Home » UFC » Henry Cejudo takes aim at Khabib Nurmagomedov over 2022’s Coach of the Year 

Henry Cejudo and Khabib Nurmagomedov are both retired UFC champions 

There seems to be a heated rivalry brewing between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Henry Cejudo.

Cejudo and Nurmagomedov both held titles during their fighting days. The pair are now coaches and have seen a lot of success from their students.

Henry Cejudo announced his retirement after defeating Dominick Cruz at UFC 249
Henry Cejudo celebrates after defeating Dominick Cruz in their bantamweight title fight during UFC 249 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on May 09, 2020 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Cejudo recently took a shot at Nurmagomedov who was in the corner of his friend and protege Islam Makhachev.

A video was released of Nurmagomedov speaking about his record in 2022. However, Cejudo suggested that he was the Coach of the Year in 2022 thanks to his exploits with Deiveson Figueiredo.

Figueiredo reclaimed the UFC Flyweight title after beating Brandon Moreno at UFC 270. Cejudo, who is also a former Flyweight and Bantamweight champion, trained the Brazilian for his trilogy bout.

The fight was a close one but Figueiredo seemed to have done enough to pick up the win.

Will Khabib Nurmagomedov also get a title as a coach?

Nurmagomedov’s best bet for winning a title seems to be Makhachev. The Russian has won his last 10 bouts and was excellent against Bobby Green on Saturday.

Makhachev picked up the win in the very first round after some ground and pound. He seems set to battle the winner of Justin Gaethje and Charles Oliveira for the UFC Lightweight title.

Nurmagomedov, as most would know, remained undefeated in his MMA career. The Eagle is now one of the best coaches in the MMA game and has a few other Russians under his tutelage.

Khabib Nurmagomedov is a legend of the sport.
Khabib Nurmagomedov is a legend of the sport. (imago Images)

Makhachev seems to be a dangerous opponent and he proved he can do some smashing apart from wrestling.

It will be interesting to see how Makhachev does once he gets into a title fight. Cejudo already has led Figueiredo to gold, and he is also training for UFC Light Heavyweight champion Jon Jones. 

Cejudo certainly leads Nurmagomedov for now in terms of titles won as a coach. The battle for Coach of the Year seems to be certainly heating up. 

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