Khabib Nurmagomedov admits he felt pressure before UFC title fights

UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov has admitted that he felt ‘pressure’ heading into his major title fights with the promotion.

With an unbeaten pro record of 29-0 in mixed martial arts, it’s no surprise that the masses believe Khabib Nurmagomedov is the greatest lightweight of all-time. ‘The Eagle’ went out on top as the dominant force at 155 pounds and while some wanted to see him keep going, the man made a promise to his mother that he’d hang up his gloves – and to the present day, he’s been able to keep that promise.

Whenever he stepped foot into the Octagon it always seemed as if he was the calmest man in the building. His composure was on a different level and once he really got going in there, very few fighters could even come close to causing him problems.

As it turns out, though, as Khabib himself revealed in a recent interview, it wasn’t like he didn’t feel the pressure on his shoulders.

“Of course, I feel this pressure too. But between fighters and champions, there’s a big difference. When pressure comes, champions can handle this. There is a lot of fighters but not everybody can become champion. A champion you become when you can handle all this pressure. You can take all this pressure and send it to the right way, you know? You can use this pressure.”

“I used this pressure for my success. A lot of guys, they go to the Octagon when they have all this pressure, millions of people watching, they cannot control this. When you have this feeling like you can use it versus your opponent, you’re gonna win.”

While Khabib will continue to be recognised as one of the GOATs of the MMA game, the fact that he walked away during his prime will forever mean there are unanswered questions still floating around.

The biggest, at