Khabib Nurmagomedov was a dominant force during his UFC career, and even in retirement, the Hall of Famer’s training camp remains a crucible of grit and endurance. Fighters emerging from his camp are known for their seemingly untouchable skill sets, a testament to Khabib’s intense regimen. This legacy was clearly evident when Belal Muhammad captured the welterweight belt by defeating Leon Edwards at UFC 304—under none other than Khabib’s expert guidance.

The impact of Khabib’s training was undeniable. Muhammad, who had prepared under the watchful eye of “The Eagle,” credited the brutal training camp for sharpening his abilities. But this was no ordinary camp—Muhammad compared the grueling experience to the “Hunger Games,” a test of willpower and survival.

Khabib’s reputation for pushing fighters to their limits has become legendary, and with champions like Muhammad emerging from his camp, it’s clear that his methods, though punishing, continue to create winners long after his own departure from the octagon.

Belal Muhammad gets humbled by Khabib Nurmagomedov

While speaking to Demetrius Johnson who himself is a powerful champion, the welterweight champ said that Khabib has still not lost a single step. He could still achieve success if he were to return to the octagon. After retiring from the sport, the former lightweight champion has transitioned into coaching and occasionally lends a helping hand to Javier Mendez. Several of his protegees have become champions and higher-ranking fighters in the respective divisions. Even Muhammad is a part of the list now however he said that the training to become a champion is grueling.

He explained how they trained and said, “That whole camp was just so hard because it was, we were like we do like light sparring, then hard wrestling, hard grappling. And then after it, Khabib would be like get in the cage with him. And whenever you go with him it’s just like a; it’s kind of like embarrassing. It is not even humbling because he just kills you and it’s to the point where like he is on top of me and he is about to give me the corner and he is like ordering coffee to his boy outside the cage.”

He got humbled fast when he realized that Nurmagomedov was ordering coffee while fighting with him. He realized that he was going to fight for the world title and yet the ‘Eagle’ was a hundred times more powerful than he was. With the best training partner and coach by his side, Muhammad achieved an amazing feat and displayed improvements in his wrestling and striking. He earned a unanimous decision win over Edwards and became the new welterweight champ. Even though Khabib is a powerful athlete he is equally humble and grounded. Let’s see an example of this told by Muhammad.

Belal Muhammad recounts Khabib Nurmagomedov’s humble nature

Muhammad recounted the ‘Eagle’s’ humbleness to Joe Rogan on the JRE MMA show. He said that the Dagestani never allowed the illusion of success and invincibility to cloud his judgment and make him overconfident. He might be called the ‘Eagle’ but he was as grounded as a strong banyan tree. Khabib walked away before the sport could smash him into the ground and chose legacy over glory.

“Khabib said it from the beginning, right? He said ‘You’re always going to lose, there’s there’s a time for everything.’ He said it about Kamaru, he said it about Tony Ferguson. He said ‘These guys, they’re going to learn the hard way.’ And to me he said ‘If I stayed in, I’d probably end up losing sometime,’” Muhammad said.

Muhammad sees Nurmagomedov as his idol and considers him the GOAT but also said that if the Dagestani returned, he would still not lose a fight. “I don’t think he would lose but, yeah like he said. And I’m looking at this guy, like, bro you could be the heavyweight champion right now, it’s nuts,” Muhammad told Rogan.

Muhammad showed true improvement and what Khabib could do to athletes, by his win at UFC 304. Now it’s time for Khabib’s cousin to fight for his bantamweight title shot. Do you think another fighter from the camp will succeed again?