Usman Nurmagomedov Gives Strong Statement to Support his Brother During Hard Times

Umar Nurmagomedov was touted as one of the biggest names in the UFC. Remaining undefeated for a fairly long time, the Dagestani star was expected to replicate the success of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev. Unfortunately, following his championship bout loss to Merab Dvalishvili, things started to go downhill. 

Now, with things looking a bit problematic, Usman has come to his brother’s defense. 

Following the loss against Dvalishvili, Nurmagomedov was making some steady progress. Fighting against Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo, the 30-year-old notched back-to-back wins. But as he took on Song Yadong, things changed drastically. At the 1:48 mark of round two, Yadong secured a shock victory by knocking the Dagestani out cold. 

With speculations about whether Umar’s UFC dreams were over are doing the rounds, his brother Usman said, “We put someone's lights off... and someone put our lights off. He who doesn't fall does not rise... We are in this sport, that's the way it is. We put someone's lights off... and someone put our lights off. It's uncomfortable. But we live with it, come back. Inshallah, we will win our next fight."

Surely, this is a heartwarming gesture from the undefeated PFL champion. Surprisingly, trying to make a strong comeback, Umar Nurmagomedov is looking to change his fighting style. 

Will Umar Nurmagomedov Switch to Striking?

As a typical Dagestani fighter, Umar is known for his strong wrestling skills. However, following his defeat to Yadong, Nurmagomedov is reportedly trying to transform into a striker. According to an update from Ali Abdelaziz, Umar is now more interested in knocking people out cold. 

In an interaction with Submission Radio, Abdelaziz said, “2027 will be the biggest year of Umar Nurmagomedov's career. He called me the other day and he was like 'I'm not a wrestler; I'm not going to wrestle again. I'm going to knock everybody out and I'm going to make sure I make it look easy."

As of now, there are no set fights for Umar Nurmagomedov in the UFC.