UFC champion coach details how Khabib Nurmagomedov 'punked' Belal Muhammad over training lesson
08/12/2024 03:47 AM
Eric Nicksick is widely considered to be one of the best MMA coaches in the entire sport and for good reason; having trained the likes of Francis Ngannou, Aljamain Sterling, and Sean Strickland to UFC world championship glory.
Yet that's not to say that the Xtreme Couture head coach isn't still a keen student of the game, and poignant lessons on how to improve training routines, which could have their own title implications, can come from a wide range of sources – including from fellow world champion athletes.
Eric Nicksick on training with Khabib Nurmagomedov
Speaking to Red Corner MMA, Nicksick was asked what it was like to watch training sessions with the legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov, who has turned from UFC champion to UFC champion coach as the likes of Islam Makhachev and Umar Nurmagomdeov find success under the Eagle's wing.
"He's amazing, when Khabib is out here running practices at the UFC PI, I had reached out and asked if it was okay because it’s invite-only… He’s like 'Yeah come through' and it’s very serious but very regimented.
"There’s no music, there’s no b******* like they’re not there to talk with one another and joke around; you’re there and it’s work from the moment you step on the mat until the moment you’re off the mat."
Nicksick acknowledged how watching the 'seriousness of that practice' led him to question various parts of his own training regimen at Xtreme Couture, which remains the premier training camp out in Las Vegas.
“It taught me a lot on how to improve some of our things that we’re doing here at Xtreme because Khabib and those guys do it at the highest standard at the highest level."
Yet the veteran coach couldn't help but break into a smile as he shared a personal story about what not to do with coach Khabib – and it pertains to the new UFC welterweight champion, Belal Muhammad.
- Who is Khabib Nurmagomedov?Inside the life of the most dominant UFC fighter of all time
Coach Nicksick on how Khabib 'punked' Belal Muhammad
Whilst Nicksick and the wider Xtreme Couture team have found outstanding success over the 17 years since the gym's founding, the Nevada native is always looking for ways to improve his gym environment.
Unfortunately for the newly crowned UFC welterweight champion, Nicksick's latest lesson came from a rather humorous interaction that the Eagle had with 'Remember the Name'.
"One of the funny things too was Belal Muhammad brought a guest that wasn’t cleared by Khabib and Khabib was not happy about that," laughed Nicksick.
"It was kind of like you could feel like he was joking but he wasn't, he was serious about it and Belal was like 'Oh dude I'm sorry' and he [Khabib] goes 'I don't know who this guy is'.
"The best part is Khabib and I are sitting there and he kind of looks at me and he's like 'Eric, are you going to let a guy in your gym that you don't know, maybe he's fighting one of your guys?' like kind of just punking Belal in front of everybody which was funny."
Nurmagomedov was later convinced to let this unknown athlete join the training session, but Nicksick said that he'd already learned a key lesson from the interaction; however humorous it may have been.
"It kind of made me realize like I sometimes open my doors too much and allow people you know to come and train that we don’t get vetted through the system… That really stood out to me and how he handled that situation.
"Khabib still let the guy train but there was a process to that, I felt like it was important- I've always heard that about AKA, you have to be 'voted in' if you're a guest, the team has to approve that, and I really like that mentality.
Nicksick ended his tale from the training mats by noting how Khabib's coaching style is "very on the other end of the spectrum of what I'm like," as he made a key mental note that "there is importance to knowing who's on your mats."
