Umar Nurmagomedov

Umar Nurmagomedov, known as "Young Eagle," is a Russian mixed martial artist from Kizilyurt, Dagestan, who competes in the bantamweight division of the UFC. He is the cousin of former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and the older brother of Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, part of the extended Nurmagomedov fighting family that first trained under the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov in Dagestan.

Nurmagomedov developed his grappling base through combat sambo and freestyle wrestling before transitioning to professional MMA, competing out of Eagles MMA and the American Kickboxing Academy alongside his cousin Khabib and longtime coach Javier Mendez. He holds the rank of International Master of Sports in combat sambo and won a combat sambo world title as a teenager, credentials that underpin the relentless top control and positional pressure that define his approach inside the cage.

Inside the Octagon, Nurmagomedov has built a reputation as one of the division's most technically complete grapplers, blending suffocating wrestling with a patient, high-volume striking game built around kicks and calculated boxing. He is equally comfortable working from the clinch, chaining takedowns, or hunting the rear-naked choke once a fight hits the mat, and he has shown durability and composure when tested on the feet, most notably absorbing an early knockdown against Bekzat Almakhan before rallying to a dominant unanimous decision.

His UFC tenure has included Performance of the Night honors for finishes of Sergey Morozov and Raoni Barcelos, along with a hard-fought unanimous decision win over Vince Morales, victories that established him as a fixture near the top of the bantamweight rankings and eventually earned him a UFC title opportunity against Merab Dvalishvili.

Trained within the same Dagestani wrestling tradition that produced Khabib's dominant run atop the lightweight division, Umar Nurmagomedov has carried the Nurmagomedov family name into the bantamweight ranks, pairing elite sambo pedigree with a methodical, pressure-based style that has made him one of the most respected grapplers in the UFC's 135-pound division.