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Is Bellator’s Usman Nurmagomedov a Better Fighter Than Islam Makhachev?

Published 07/31/2021, 11:14 AM EDT

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Usman Nurmagomedov is all set to compete at the Bellator 263 event this weekend. Nurmagomedov will face Manny Muro in his 13th professional MMA fight. Till now Nurmagomedov has won all of his fights and has an MMA record of (12-0). Therefore, when the Dagestani fighter steps into the cage this weekend, he would look to continue this winning momentum.

As Usman Nurmagomedov is undefeated in his MMA career and is the cousin of legendary MMA fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov, people expect him to be the next big thing in MMA. However, there is one more fighter that trains under ‘The Eagle’ and is counted amongst the brightest MMA prospects in the world. That fighter is UFC lightweight Islam Makhachev.

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Makhachev is 29 years old and is already considered one of the top performers in the UFC. The fighter has a professional MMA record of (20-1) and is undefeated since 2015. As both these fighters are extremely talented and come from the same place and also train under the same coach. We decided to look at which of these fighters has a brighter future.

Islam Makhachev or Usman Nurmagomedov – Who is the better fighter?

If one goes by the records of the two fighters, there is not much to differentiate. Both fighters have incredible records, however, Makhachev is more experienced than Nurmagomedov and has fought more. Both the fighters also have similar styles as they both train under the same team.

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However, the biggest difference between the fighters is that Makhachev has faced top-quality opponents often, while Nurmagomedov is yet to do so. Makhachev has faced fighters like Drew Dober and Thiago Moises and has come out on top. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov’s biggest test will be when he faces Muro at Bellator 263.

However, one aspect that we can see, Nurmagomedov getting the edge over Makhachev is his ability to finish fights. The fighter has won 10 of his 12 fights via stoppage. Compared to this Makhachev has just 12 out of 20 wins via stoppage. However, Makhachev also showed in his last fight, that he can compete in championship rounds, as for the 1st time in his career he went to the 4th round against Moises and won.

The point still remains that both these fighters haven’t reached the pinnacle of their respective careers. Usman Nurmagomedov is still very young at 23 years of age and while Makhachev is pushing for a UFC title, there is still time, before he competes for the belt.

Who do you think is the better fighter Islam Makhachev or Usman Nurmagomedov? Let us know in the comments.

 

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Written by:

Paras Pande

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Paras Pande is a UFC author at EssentiallySports who is pursuing his graduation in Journalism and Mass Communication. An ardent follower of the UFC, he has been covering the sport for 2 years now. Before joining the team at EssentiallySports, Paras gained expertise as an MMA writer whilst working with Sportskeeda.
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