Daniel Cormier could have found himself at the end of an assault at the gym of the former UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Cormier has had a huge influence on the enthusiastic fighters hailing from Dagestan. It was ‘The Eagle’ who was the pioneer to earn the global recognition of the region.
Javier Mendez opens up on Daniel Cormier incident
After Khabib, a series of fighters from Dagestan pursued a career in MMA. Many of them joined the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), where Nurmagomedov trained under the guidance of coach Javier Mendez for eight years. Khabib Crazy Haircut Photo Stuns UFC Fans
The star-studded roster at the gym also included Cormier, whose playful interactions with Khabib Nurmagomedov have often gone viral on social media.
Detailing one such incident where Cormier was “goofing around” with the former UFC lightweight champion, Mendez said ‘DC’ could have been attacked by the other Dagestanis at AKA as they failed to comprehend the lightheartedness in the hilarious encounter between Cormier and Nurmagomedov.
“They are a family. That’s why when you get in trouble with one, you got in trouble with the whole (Dagestani) pack,” said Mendez on his podcast uploaded to YouTube. “It isn’t one of those things where you can’t single one out. Especially if you think you can jump on Khabib, oh yeah, go ahead… I remember one time DC was goofing around and they swarmed around DC. I kid you not, it was a joke, but I could tell if they got serious with Khabib, those guys would have jumped on DC. They would have jumped on him. The only reason why I might be safe is because they all respect me.”
