Ritu Phogat Says She Likes the Title ‘Lady Khabib’

Ritu Phogat, the rising prodigy of Indian MMA, deserves all the attention she is receiving right now. ‘The Indian Tigress’ has transitioned herself finely from wrestling to MMA and currently boasts a record of 2-0.

That said, she still has a plenty long route to walk on. However, residing in a nation of more than 1.35 billion people, Phogat is already a sensation. She made her MMA debut with One Championship on November 16, 2019, and took on a strong opponent in Nam Hee Kim.

While she set a benchmark with her first win, Phogat retained the hype with another win against Chiao Chen Wu in February 2020.  The second win made a lot of fans compare her with Khabib Nurmagomedov, billing her as the ‘lady Khabib’.

Ritu Phogat- The lady Khabib for her fans

Speaking exclusively with EssentiallySports, Phogat voiced her opinion on being on the same scale as the UFC champion. No wonder it motivates her, and she aspires to inspire her countrymen throughout, in her MMA career.

“I really liked that, it inspires me, I watch his (Khabib) videos and I want to attain his level at some point in future. And I prefer this title (lady Khabib). It motivates me and I will try to retain this dominance always,” declared Phogat.

It might be a bit rapid to compare Ritu Phogat and Khabib Nurmagomedov. However, they flex a lot of similarities in their background and nature. Both of them hail from the wrestling domain.

Thus, they have successfully utilized their skill to overpower their rivals to date. Also, they are undefeated at this point. So, it might be a bit absurd, but Khabib and Ritu are basically on a similar platform.

Ritu and Khabib in action

Both the A-listers will return to action soon. Khabib Nurmagomedov will defend his lightweight title against Justin Gaethje at the main event of UFC 254.

Meanwhile, Phogat has also hinted at her return by the end of this year. Her opponent is yet to be finalized, but she appears ready to take on anyone and everyone. No wonder she will garner a lot of eyeballs on a comeback.

‘The Indian Tigress’ possesses all the chances of advancing herself to 3-0 shortly.