Khabib Nurmagomedov was present alongside UFC President Dana White in what was his first appearance after the promotion announced Nurmagomedov’s official retirement. Nurmagomedov was present during the UFC Vegas 22 main-event fight between Kevin Holland and Derek Brunson and seemed to be having a great time.
Needless to say, despite the losing effort against Brunson, Holland had his fair share of moments. During the first and second round, Holland could be seen asking Nurmagomedov for advice. In what was an incredible game-plan for Brunson, the MMA veteran was able to land several takedowns during the fight and completely dominated the Trailblazer.
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Needless to say, after being dominated by a former All-American wrestler, Holland looked over at Khabib asking him for wrestling advice. Surprisingly enough, Nurmagomedov, who was sitting beside Dana White, streaming the entire fight from the cage-side on his social media network could be seen giving some valuable lessons to the rising contender.
Khabib Nurmagomedov vows to train Kevin Holland
Nurmagomedov gave some valuable advice to Holland during the fight. “Next time I’ll teach you. You need to learn. Hip control foot movement it’s very important for your style” the Dagestani fighter could be heard saying.
In recent times, Nurmagoemdov has donned the hat of a coach. He was last seen cornering his close friend and lightweight contender Islam Makhachev during his spectacular win over Drew Dober back at UFC 259. Due to his incredible work with fighters like Umar Nurmagomedov, Zubaira Tukhugov, and others, the former lightweight champion is also in contention for Coach of the Year 2021.
Needless to say, Nurmagomedov could be a valuable addition to Holland’s team. Holland showed weak takedown defense and was dominated by Brunson for almost the entire stretch of the fight. However, Holland did have his moments. It was mostly in the final round where he was able to deny Brunson of a takedown. Surprisingly enough, he was also able to land one of his own. In the process, becoming the only fighter to land a takedown against Derek Brunson.
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Holland will have to make a lot of adjustments going forward. That is if he wants to remain in the top-10 of the division. Be that as it may, Holland is just 29 and has a great career ahead of him.