Khabib Nurmagomedov: belief

Transcript context

…Well, thank you, brother. Let me ask you this. A lot of people say you’re number one, the greatest of all time. Do you think Islam has a chance to become the greatest MMA fighter of all time? Well, I’ve never said that, and I never set out to become number one or to become the greatest athlete and so on. I never had that. My goal was always to become the best in my sport, to become a world champion, to prove to myself that I could do it. But it’s hard to choose just one person. Even now, look, there’s always going to be St-Pierre, there’s always going to be Demetrious Johnson, there’s always going to be Jon Jones, there’s always going to be Fedor. If people want to include me in that conversation, if Islam gets into that conversation, if there’s Cain Velasquez, Cormier, and so on, I’d be happy about that. And that’s my goal, that someone from our team, from the people closest to me, gets there too. If Jon Jones is there, why can’t Islam be there? If Demetrious Johnson is there with 11 title defenses, why can’t Islam be there? It’s a good question. Why not? I’d like him to break all those records, to overtake Jon Jones, Demetrious Johnson, and St-Pierre, no matter how much respect I have for them. Islam has a chance, but time is starting to run out a little. This worries me because, for example, Jones fought at light heavyweight and now at heavyweight. Time is a little kinder to those divisions. Even at 38, you can still compete at the heavier weights. You don’t need the same reaction speed and all that. But when you compete in lighter weight classes, 155, 170, age really catches up. I think active fighters, retired fighters, wrestlers, athletes, especially those who competed in these weight classes, will understand what I’m talking about. When you’re 35 and when you’re 32 and when you’re 38, you’re a totally different athlete. From where you are now, you can see the entire fight business, and you know Dana White very well. I’d say he’s one of those rare geniuses in sports business, in business, period. I don’t think the UFC would exist without Dana White. There are important people there, of course, but he’s really at the center of it all. What can you say about him? What qualities, what traits have made him such a successful businessman?…

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