Seconds after making Justin Gaethje submit in their UFC lightweight title fight in Abu Dhabi in October 2020, Khabib Nurmagomedov sank to his knees. The fighter buried his head in his hands, and began sobbing uncontrollably. His body jerked and shuddered with a level of violence generally reserved only for his opponents.
This was an outpouring of emotion so profound. The mask of one of sport’s greatest fighters slipped to one side to reveal the human underneath. Khabib’s previously stoic persona subsided to allow the devastating loss of his father, and years of in-ring pressure to manifest itself in the rawest of human emotion.
The metaphorical weight he carried into that evening in the UAE capital’s Fight Island event is more than any of us will ever experience in our lifetimes. Defending an undefeated professional record, millions of eyes across the world were tuned in to see how he would fare following the death of his father, coach and mentor, just three months earlier.
Despite the immense pressure Khabib looked unfazed. But little did the watching world know, he had also secretly promised his mother that it would be his last fight. Win, lose or draw.
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Khabib wears top and trousers by Loro Piana; Watch, Epic x Chrono Khabib, by Jacob & Co.
As is often the case with a generational sporting talent, they are burdened with unbridled expectation on their shoulders. As a Muslim fighter from Russia’s southern region of Dagestan, Khabib’s career captured the imagination and inspired millions of people across the world. A classic rags-to-riches story of a man that (literally) fought his way to the top of his industry without meaning to, Khabib no longer fought on behalf of himself, his family, or his country—his entire faith held him as a beacon, a man whose values and his life choices made him an icon. Albeit a reluctant one.
“This influence weighs on me very much,” he tells Esquire Middle East in his first in-depth interview since that night in October. “It is an influence that they put on me in as an example, as a person, and it bothers me very much. I would like people to see me as an example as an athlete who has achieved something. I do not want to be held up as an example of being a Muslim. It really annoys me. In our faith we already have someone to take an example from. This is a person who walked among us, a person who grew up among us and was the same person as everyone else—this is the Prophet Muhammad. I take example from him and other Muslims should take an example from him, and not from me or other famous personalities.”
In a sport where over-the-top personalities have a history of being pushed to the front of the queue, an introvert like Khabib has learnt to live with the spotlight his success has brought him, rather than to fully embrace it. To this day, having to deal with the day-to-day trappings of fame is something he admits that he still struggles to wrestle with.
“Life in the public eye is very stressful. I would like to live the ordinary life of an ordinary person, like I did 10 years ago. But now I have championship belts, from fights won by me.” While he was under no illusion that fame would come with success, the weight of it can at times be too much. “I understood that fame would come along with this, but I did not realize that it would be so difficult. It’s very hard to live like this and I would like to return to the calmness that was before I became famous.”
Within the whirlwind of international fight fame, the man who often used to guide Khabib through the difficult times was his father.
“Faith means everything to me. If there was no faith [when my father died] I would probably have gone crazy.”
Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov was much more than the man he called ‘father’. Coach, mentor, best friend, and the person who single handedly mapped out ‘The Eagle’’s unblemished 29-0 fight career—this was a bond that went so far beyond the realms of a father and son.
Often referred to in shorthand as ‘Father’s Plan’, Khabib’s career goes down in MMA folklore as the blueprint of one of the greatest we will ever see. It was the forging of not only Khabib the fighter, but Khabib the man.
“There were some moments when I did not agree with him or my father did not agree with me, but we always found some kind of compromise and came to a resolution,” says Khabib as he explains that a level of complete trust was central to the process, and even when questions were raised, the outcomes would always be fruitful. “There were many times when I used to not even understand why my father was telling me something at that moment. But he told me: ‘you just do, you will come to the result’ and 80 percent of the time when I thought so, then I came to the final result and I realized that my father was right. And there are a lot of times when my father told me and even if I did not agree, then I just followed his instructions and the result was 90 percent positive and good for me.”
If you talk to most people about Khabib’s father, they will likely refer to him as a coach—but this is the furthest thing from what his son wants him to be remembered as. Through his eyes you see more a man of the people—one who developed and helped humans, and not merely athletes.
“I would not want people to associate him as a coach, as a person who developed wrestling or something else. My father had a lot of projects and the biggest thing he did was he brought up people, brought up a personality and he always told me: “The biggest and best investment is investing in people”,” he says. “There were a lot of relatives close, whom my father both supported and raised. There were many orphans who he watched over and cared for. So in this direction he left a very large legacy. A lot of people depended on him. Of course, it all depends on the Almighty, but he was the reason for this. So, I thought that he left a huge legacy and over time people will understand it even more.”
It is these qualities Khabib looks to take on himself—not those of a day-to-day coach but more so those of a mentor.
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Khabib wears Jacket and Shirt, both by Brunello Cucinelli; Watch, Epic x Titanium Skeleton Tourbillon Khabib, by Jacob & Co.
It’s 1.54pm on a January afternoon in Dubai Media City, and a black Mercedes G-wagon with tinted windows pulls up outside ITP Media Group. It sits there motionless for exactly five minutes before the doors open and Khabib Nurmagomedov, flanked by three of his entourage, climb out. As they walk into the building someone makes a lighthearted comment about how precisely punctual he is, to which Khabib looks down at his watch—a limited-edition collaboration known as ‘The Eagle’ he created with luxury watchmaker Jacob&Co—turns and says with a completely deadpan expression “it is important to be on time. It is important to be professional.”
On set Khabib is clearly the leader of the pack. While unspoken, you get the impression that those around him look to him for guidance and direction. There is no manager playing good or bad cop on his behalf. He talks, he listens and operates with a respect and professionalism that, while laced with an element of no-nonsense, isn’t as intimidating as you would expect the ruthless UFC fighter to be. It’s clear that he has long-since settled into the role as a leader and, post-retirement, it is something that he is trying to embrace, wishing to further impart his wisdom on those near to him.
“As a Muslim, I do not want to be held up as an example. It really annoys me, because in our faith we [already] have someone to take example from.”
“Now that I’m not going to train any more, I have people close to me—brothers and friends—who are now fighting at the highest level,” he says. “There are about five or six people who we are building the path with, and I will help them, train with them, share my experiences.” When asked if he plans on going into coaching the next generation of fighters he stops short of that accepting that title. “To some extent, this can be called a coaching life, but I am not going to fully enter into coaching. I will always be there and share my experience.”
When Covid-19 complications took the life of Nurmagomedov Snr, many questioned the ability of Khabib to cope. How would losing a figure so integral to all facets of his life affect someone so clearly fixed on his path, and troubled with factors outside his control?
Once again faith came to Khabib’s aid at a time when he needed it most.
Khabib wears jacket and t-shirt by Loro Piana;Watch, Epic x Chrono Khabib, by Jacob & Co.
“Faith means everything to me. If there was no faith, I would probably have gone crazy,” he admits. “Faith teaches us that we should be content with what the Almighty gives. He gives, He takes, He predetermines how a person will live and how long he has to live. In this moment, faith helped me a lot, and without faith I don’t know how I would behave.”
Not only is faith a source of comfort for Khabib, but the very values he holds in esteem above all, the single most important thing he lives his life by.
“This is what we were created for, what we were born for—to worship the Almighty alone and for me faith is above sport, above all. I would also like my children, my loved ones, to be believers in one Almighty and to believe that only the Almighty can predetermine the fate of not only one person, but also all mankind. The worst thing is when a person worships something else along with the Almighty, inventing a deity for himself. Faith is above family, above everything else.”
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For 12 years Khabib has been a professional fighter. It is the ultimate dichotomy. Mixed martial arts is unadulterated violence.
A sport steeped in controversy that had, until recent years, struggled to find a mainstream identity. A sport previously referred to as ‘human cock-fighting’, is generally not the desired workplace for a man so peaceful at heart.
For 28 fights Khabib punched, choked, and manipulated limbs on the way to his standing as arguably the greatest pound-for-pound mixed martial artist of all-time. While his emotions following his victory over Gaethje were clear for all to see, another action during the fight was less apparent.
In the closing stages, the opportunity was there for Khabib to apply an arm bar. A move that involves the forcing of the elbow joint in the opposite direction to its regular movement. The pain is excruciating, the damage to ligaments and tendons can be permanent. Choose not to tap out, and the arm will be broken.
In one of the biggest moments of his life, Khabib refused the opportunity, instead switching his body position and applying a choke hold that, while still offering extreme discomfort, results in a swift submission and no lasting damage. His reason? The respect he had for Gaethje and his onlooking family. He wanted the fight to be over, but with no lasting damage or trauma. At a moment filled with chaos and emotion, Khabib showed a quality rarely seen inside the Octagon. Mercy.
Khabib wears jacket and t-shirt, by Loro Piana; Watch, Epic x Chrono Khabib, by Jacob & Co.
So how does a man so sedate by nature, reconcile with being so adept at violence?
“That we have to hurt our rivals to show our superiority, this is the only thing that bothers me in this sport,” he laments. “In this regard, I really love football, because you can show by beauty how good an athlete you are.”
For so long Khabib has been so dominant. Rarely does the conversation about the greatest ‘pound-for-pound’ MMA fighter of all time happen without the Russian’s name involved. In fight mode, he is dogged, focused, ruthless, and always with an eerily calm in the heat of combat.
“Inside the Octagon I am one person, outside I am a completely different person,” he says. “Inside I have to show all my aggression, my readiness for any outcome of the fight, and I always set a goal to raise my hand as the victor, but outside the cage I am an ordinary person. As the saying goes: ‘To be, not to seem’. In this regard, it is not difficult for me to be a good person. I am a good person, I think. The only thing you cannot include is what happens inside the Octagon. I’m not always good for my opponents.”
With respect, we can correct Khabib there, he has never been good for his opponents.
Twenty-nine men have tried and twenty-nine men have failed to defeat a man who was born to fight. Fabled from a young age for his training regime alongside his father, Khabib was wrestling bears from a young age to ready him for fighting. What hope did mere mortals have?
Khabib wears shirt, by Loro Piana; Watch, Epic x Titanium Skeleton Khabib, by Jacob & Co.
His retirement in the immediate aftermath of the Gaethje fight stunned but didn’t surprise fight fans. All that pressure and emotion was bound to tell. In Khabib’s words, he wanted to be “free” again, for the first time in as long as he can remember, to not be a slave to his training regime.
“Every day I woke up in the morning and started training, and in the evening my body was exhausted, because I had brought it to the limit. I just want to live a life in which I can get at least a little sleep before lunchtime, to live for myself and not devote myself 100 percent to sports.” That does stem the clamour for his return. UFC President Dana White, an abrasive yet alluring figure at the head of the organisation knows the monetary value of a return—and refuses to let go of one of his most treasured assets. Even in retirement his name is always on the tip of everyone’s tongue. Yet Khabib himself can’t conclusively end speculation: “I think only time will answer this question. We will see,” he says.
During the fight with Gaethje, in a moment filled with chaos and emotion, Khabib showed a quality rarely seen inside the Octagon. Mercy.
Had Conor McGregor won his recent return fight in Abu Dhabi this past January, the temptation to turn down a second fight with his most heated rivalry may have been too great to turn down, even for Khabib. Their fight in 2018 had one of the most unpalatable build ups in recent memory. McGregor’s disdain for the champion’s family, and faith, went beyond the level of insult into downright disrespect. While he was keen to say the words did not affect him, Khabib’s notion of the feeling post fight tells us much more. “I just ignored it and showed inside the Octagon that you can’t just wag your tongue, but you have to prove it with your body, which my opponent could not do,” he explains.
A win over McGregor is coveted, but for Khabib it went even deeper—it was his defining moment, and the fight his career would go to be judged on. “It was a great joy, because to some people, they thought that McGregor could not lose. A lot had been said, a lot. My whole career depended on this fight, and…when I won, it was as if a mountain fell from my shoulders. I don’t think it can be described in a few words. I wish everyone could feel for himself what that is like.”
For a man undefeated, and unparalleled in his career, Khabib looks back now with a modesty that belies the attitude of many of his peers. Twelve years, and 29 fights later just what was it that set him aside from the other trained killers he shared an Octagon with—and was there ever a fear of letting that unbeaten run come to a shuddering halt?
“I don’t know if this can be called ‘fear’ or not, but I never wanted to lose. When I’m getting ready, I always think that if I don’t do everything that depends on me, then inside the cage the one who did prepare well will be stronger. I just don’t like to lose in my life.”
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Considering the esteem the sporting world holds him in today—as one of the greatest athletes in the history of fight sports—it is bizarre to think of the life Khabib would have lived had he never made it to the Octagon.
Hailing from a remote Dagestan farming village, it is not a far stretch to believe that a life of agriculture would have beckoned, in fact, Khabib even jokes about it. But now, in retirement, his successes have afforded him a very different lifestyle. Growing progressively more prolific on Social Media (his Instagram account has 27 million followers) his page showcases a combination of his new daily grind: travelling, celebrity hangs and commercial promotions. “I am involved in all sorts of different projects, building projects for the future,” he says. “This life is unfamiliar to me, but I am trying to get used to it.”
Time and planning is clearly a virtue Khabib holds in great esteem. Throughout the afternoon with Esquire, he is punctual and keen to not see a second wasted unnecessarily. This is not a man to idle away twenty minutes with chit-chat. “Time, is what people underestimate the most,” he says. “You can buy everything in this life, but you will never buy health and time. Time is very important. If you waste time, not using it correctly, not using it in the right direction, then you can never get it back. So, we must value time. Time is all we have, but it is neglected by so many people.”
In person Khabib doesn’t give much away. His face is difficult to read, and his personality is one to be teased out. An initial ambivalence towards the clothes selected for him subsided as the shoot progressed with him grow increasingly interested in the clothing rail—even asking if he could buy the majority of pieces from it.
It is this growing interest in life outside of the ring that has led Khabib to partner with Jacob & Co. on the series of ‘The Eagle’ timepieces. Founder and Chairman Jacob Arabo is a big fight fan and approached the fighter with the belief that he perfectly encapsulated what his company was all about. Much like his other business dealings, Khabib demands an alignment of values before putting pen to paper, this is not a man who will sell his name or image to the highest bidder.
“I met with Jacob and we decided that we have a lot of things in common—values, interests, outlook on life,” says Khabib. “They absolutely reflect my character and my spirit,” he says of the watch collection’s three designs. “We took a long time to choose the designs, and discussed how we will implement it all. I was very excited because it was the first time I started working with watches and immediately got to partner with such a big brand. I believe that this project will be very successful.”
The partnership shows the direction of Khabib’s new future—his business endeavors taking a lead role ahead of his sporting career—and an increasing importance of how he spends the time that the Almighty has given him.
The Khabib we meet seems like he’s in a good place. For the first time in his life he has taken proper time off to heal emotionally from years spent in the fight game, and dedicated more time to his friends, family, faith and future—and time to continue the grieving process for his father. Does he care about how he is remembered?
“I don’t think people will understand this yet. Time will pass and history will tell the story.” Perhaps this was his father’s plan after all.
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Photography by Adel Rashid
Art Direction by Cate Warde
Styling by Ninorta Malke
Hair & Make-up by Elina Nemchenko
Styling assistance by Nour Bou Ezz and Jody Hassan
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