UFC 254: Khabib Nurmagomedov shut out his MMA career in fashion Saturday with a victory and, based on his teammate, an act of empathy. Nurmagomedov successfully defended his UFC lightweight championship by completing Justin Gaethje using a second-round triangle.
He used that submission rather than the armbar he originally had set up, American Kickboxing Academy training spouse Daniel Cormier stated on Monday, because Nurmagomedov did not wish to injure Gaethje in front of Gaethje’s parents.”He explained when he was watching the interviews over the course of this week, he saw that Justin explained he would never tap,” Cormier, who was an analyst on the UFC 254 telecast, told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani on the DC & Helwani program.
“He had been going to do the armbar, but he had heard Justin saying all week that he would never tap, and he did not wish to hurt him in front of his parents. So he went into the triangle and just kind of put him to sleep.”A fighter who doesn’t tap while stuck in an armbar or other joint manipulation runs the risk of getting the limb broken, while a choke without a TapouT leaves the fighter unconscious. “If I put him to sleep,” Cormier stated Nurmagomedov told him”he will wake up and everything will be OK.”Gaethje’s parents were in attendance at the fight at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Nurmagomedov was competing with his own family in your mind, too. His father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, that also had been his primary mentor and coach, died in July in a heart condition complex by COVID-19. Following the fight, Saturday, the 32-year-old champ (29-0) announced his retirement by invoking his mother’s desire that he fight no more.
Cormier knew Nurmagomedov went into the battle with a broken toe and”a litany of problems” during training, such as an unspecified accident early in the camp which sidelined the champ for almost four weeks. But Cormier had no thought beforehand that Nurmagomedov was intending on joining him .” He didn’t say anything,” said Cormier, who retired in August after a heavyweight title fight loss to winner Stipe Miocic. “I watched him several times during the week.
“And once the retirement announcement came?”
I was almost brought to tears, sitting at the commentary desk, observing him in the center of the Octagon,” Cormier said. Dependent on the relationship he’s developed with Nurmagomedov whilst training together at AKA fitness center in San Jose, California, Cormier believes strongly that there will be no comeback.” This is real,” he said. “Khabib doesn’t lie. Khabib does not play’I am retiring and I am coming back.
‘”What sealed the finality for Cormier was hearing Nurmagomedov mention his mother saying she did not need him to struggle anymore and that he’d promised her the fight Saturday is his last one.”When he explained, he stated,’I give my word, and that is the one thing I have,’ I was like,’ He’s done,'” Cormier said.
“He’s never lied to me personally. Maybe he has messed around. We’ve had fun. We have played jokes. We have done a lot of things. But the one thing he doesn’t do is lie. And I don’t think he’d lie to his mom, especially in the face of what they’re dealing with as a family.”
