Javier Mendez: Usman Nurmagomedov 'the most talented I've ever trained'

Javier Mendez had high praise for Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov.

Like former undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, current UFC lightweight champ Islam Makhachev, and No. 1 UFC bantamweight contender Umar Nurmagomedov, Usman is trained by American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez.

Although Mendez has trained some of the most accomplished fighters including former UFC dual-champion Daniel Cormier, former UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez, and former UFC middleweight champ Luke Rockhold, he made a bold claim about Usman Nurmagomedov (18-0).

“I see Usman as being the pound-for-pound greatest fighter myself – he’s got all the attributes,” Mendez told Red Corner MMA. “He’s the most talented I’ve ever trained. In regards to whether he ever goes to the UFC or not, I don’t know if it’s going to matter as long as he keeps showing people how great he is. So to me, if at one point he never goes, great – he’s still going to be regarded as one of the great ones. He will. You watch.

“He will be regarded as one of the great ones because what he does in that cage is like nobody. I’ve never seen anybody do the transitions, the movement that he does – he’s unbelievable. He’s only 26. He’s only getting better. So let’s see what happens, but you never know. He may be a PFL fighter/Bellator fighter for the rest of his career. For me, I’m happy about that because he’ll be successful with it. Wherever he goes, it’s going to be success.”

Nurmagomedov, who’s coming off a unanimous decision win over Alexander Shabliy in September, doesn’t currently have a fight booked. But with Paul Hughes picking up a big win over A.J. McKee October at PFL: Battle of the Giants, that will likely be his next title defense.