In a recent video posted on Instagram by AKA head coach Javier Mendez, two of the gym’s greatest fighters shared a touching moment.
Khabib Nurmagomedov may have defined this stable for many years but before him, there was heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez flying the AKA flag alongside Luke Rockhold and Daniel Cormier.
Velasquez competed in one of the biggest fights in the history of the gym when he faced Brock Lesnar at UFC 121 and brought the heavyweight title back with him.
In the video, Nurmagomedov is watching the fight on his phone whilst stood next to his former teammate, speaking about the impact this fight had on him, recalling how he watched it hundreds of times.
It’s a warm exchange as “The Eagle” gives deserved props to one of the heavyweight division’s greatest fighters.
MMA Fans React To Khabib Nurmagomedov Taking A Second To Recognise Cain Velasquez
The fans reacted on social media to Nurmagomedov celebrating one of the biggest nights in the history of AKA.
Velasquez will always be a legend of the sport but what he did that night against Lesnar put him into a whole new level of recognition and in turn, this brought a lot of credibility to AKA, where Nurmagomedov would go on to spend his years.
“Cain look like he was holding back tears”
“Feels so good to watch khabib fanboying”
“My goat knows how to respect your elders esp when they’re going through tuff times”
“Khabib has respect for him, he was a champion before Khabib was and treated him like family and He still remembers that”
“Team AKA produced the best UFC champions out of every camp in the USA.”
“Guys like Khabib are the best kind of people to have in your corner”
“Perfect time to go rewatch that fight.”
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