Khabib Nurmagomedov successfully defended his belt for the third time at UFC 254. Many touted Justin Gaethje to be the toughest test for ‘The Eagle’ to date; however, the Dagestani fighter made it look easy as he dominated the fight and got an early finish.
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In the aftermath of UFC 254, details emerged that made Khabib’s victory over Justin Gaethje even more impressive. It was revealed that Khabib had suffered a broken toe during the fight camp. As a result, Khabib was sidelined for long periods of his training camp.
Read: Dana White says Khabib Nurmagomedov ‘Broke his foot’ before fighting Justin Gaethje at UFC 254
Khabib Nurmagomedov had a litany of issues, says teammate Daniel Cormier
In a recent interview, Ariel Helwani asked Daniel Cormier if he knew of Khabib’s injuries and what was the extent of the same. To which ‘DC’ replied saying:
“Yeah, there were a litany of issues. There were so many more outside of just the toe. There was an issue early on in camp that had him sidelined for almost 4 weeks of nothing. And there were a number of things that he went through over the camp that really did hinder him.”
"There were a litany of issues… so many more outside of just the toe. There was an issue early in camp that had him sidelined for almost four weeks of nothing."@dc_mma knew heading into #UFC254 that @TeamKhabib was injured, but would not pull out because "it meant too much." pic.twitter.com/kiI7pP1MZD
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 26, 2020
Helwani then asked if Daniel thought at any point if Khabib would not make it to the fight. The former double champ replied saying, “No, I knew he was going to fight. It just meant too much. But I knew that it could be potentially a tough fight…. He just showed man, that even in the most un-ideal circumstance, he is still able to distance himself from this division. “
Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the toughest fighters in the UFC. Though he has pulled out from fights previously, there was too much on the line this time around for him to not fight.
It just goes to show that there is nothing that could have prevented Khabib from making the walk one final time and defending his belt against Justin Gaethje. Nurmagomedov deserves an awful lot of credit for powering through despite all the difficulties and still winning. The Dagestani fighter is without a doubt one of the toughest fighters, both mentally and physically.
