Mendes on Makhachev: “He never copied Khabib”

Javier Mendez, head coach of the AKA gym, stated that the current UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev never tried to copy my friend and former promotion champion in this division Khabib Nurmagomedova.

“Islam has never copied Khabib Nurmagomedov. And I never felt pressure. Islam has been Islam from the very beginning. He knew what to do, he had his own path, and he had an example in Khabib. But Makhachev never followed in Khabib’s footsteps. He has his own identity and even his own catchphrases. Islam is not similar to Khabib in character, he is rather reminiscent of Cowboy Cerrone.”