Khabib Nurmagomedov has experienced an understandably challenging build-up to his title defence against Justin Gaethje in Abu Dhabi this weekend, but coach Javier Mendez believes the lightweight champion will use his father’s death to spur him to victory.
Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who coached his son from an early age, died in July from heart complications accentuated by contracting Covid-19. The Russian, 57, was a hugely influential figure in mixed martial arts in his homeland.
On Saturday night, Khabib Nurmagomedov competes for the first time since the loss – he returns also to the octagon following 13 months out – when his clash with interim champion Gaethje headlines UFC 254, the “Return to Fight Island” finale.
Unbeaten in all 28 professional fights, Nurmagomedov’s last competitive bout took place also in Abu Dhabi.
Asked during media day on Thursday if the lead-up to the fight was more difficult mentally than that UFC 242 in September 2019, when Nurmagomedov's father cornered him for the only time in his UFC career, longtime coach Mendez said: "This one's harder. He's on track, but this is harder, no lie. I can see it. And one element, we all know it: his father. This has been even more of a lonelier time for him.
“[But] I think that’s what’s actually going to help us, too: the fact that he’s doing it for his father, and himself obviously. Because you can’t just do it for one person, it’s got to be for yourself.”
Coach to Nurmagomedov since 2012, Mendez has taken a more prominent role for this camp, the majority of which was based in Dubai. He was close to Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, but in his absence has had a greater input in preparation for Gaethje.
“It does affect,” Mendez said. “When I had his father with me – even though I’ve only cornered one time and that was [against] Dustin – I would talk to Khabib about things, about how we would apply things, and he would always say, ‘Yes, my father says the same thing, coach’.
“I don’t have that any more, so I don’t have that that back-up, someone who grew with him and knew him better than anybody. So for me it’s a little bit more difficult, per se.
“But [Khabib’s] been handling it fantastic. He’s driven. He’s motivated to preserve the legacy that him and his father had planned. That’s the one thing I can say is great: his mind. It’s like he says, ‘Coach, if anything breaks it’s OK because my mind is not broken’.”
Tellingly, Mendez does not expect Gaethje to “break” either.
The American, who set up Saturday's encounter by dominating Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 in May, said on Wednesday that he was "screwed" if he allowed Nurmagomedov, arguably the greatest wrestler in UFC history, to force him onto the cage.
Mendez, though, acknowledged Gaethje’s seemingly indefatigable spirit, with the division's No 1 contender (22-2) often saying he thrives in "chaos" inside the octagon.
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UFC 242: Khabib dominates Poirier
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On whether Nurmagomedov forcing Gaethje onto the fence would sap that conviction, Mendez said: “Absolutely not. That guy ain’t quitting for nothing. That guy’s a true warrior. You have got to kill him to stop him, [that goes for] both of those guys. It goes in the middle, if it goes in the cage, he’s fighting, he’s giving his all.
“You’ve seen what a type of person he is. You’ve seen what kind of great warrior he is, the mentality he has. How can you not love him? If you don’t love him, you have to respect him.
“Obviously I’m Khabib’s coach and I love him and I want him to win and we’re doing everything we can. But Justin is as credible as they come in every department: mental, physical, how he approaches the fight game, how he acts. He’s great everywhere.”
Meanwhile, Mendez’s counterpart, Trevor Whittman, said the key to the fight would be whoever was stronger in the mind.
“This fight is 100 per cent mental," he said.
"These guys are at the highest level. It’s who can go out there and do what they do. You have to be in control of yourself to win championships and Khabib has been the best at that. He has controlled himself throughout fights. He’s had conversations with guys when he fights them.
"What we have to do is take him out of control. We’re not going to sit there and force him to be out of control; we’ve got to control ourselves and not break. Khabib breaks people.
"Justin Gaethje says the craziest things. I’ve coached for a long time and I’ve never had athletes say things in the way he says them. It’s real. He really loves a fight; he really says, ‘Hey man, if I die I want to die in here’. That’s crazy to me.
"And just to be real with that. Honesty and truth to yourself and your self-image is key in life. And I know he’s going to perform.”