Khabib Nurmagomedov Said Mike Tyson Being A Fan Of His Was A 'Dream Come True'

Khabib Nurmagomedov once had the rare honour of being invited to visit Mike Tyson's house, before the boxing legend was at UFC 219 to cheer the Russian on.

The UFC lightweight champion is one of the scariest men inside the octagon and Tyson was certainly one of the scariest inside the ring.

Back in 2017 Tyson was cageside for Khabib's win against Edson Barboza and after the fight the Eagle spoke about how the former world heavyweight champion had invited him to his house, "The last time I was in Vegas I met with him inside his house. He invited me. I am a big fan of Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali. And I want to be the greatest like these guys. Not only inside the cage but also outside.

"A champion inside the ring is not everything. You have to be the greatest outside too. Muhammad Ali is a perfect example. In mixed martial arts also I like how Faber and George St-Pierre move outside the ring.

"You cannot do a lot of crazy stuff outside the cage. Even if you beat everyone inside the cage, you have to be a champion outside the cage rather than inside. Mike Tyson is like that for me."

Speaking about having 'Iron Mike' as a fan of his the undefeated Russian added, "First time I watched Mike Tyson fight it was like 2003, February when he fought Clifford Etienne. I watched the fight at 5 or 6 in the morning.

"And I can't imagine how after 14-15 years in Vegas I'm going to show the best performance of the night and Tyson watched my fight. It's like a dream come true. You never know what happens tomorrow, so if you have dreams you must follow it."

Khabib could get the chance at some point to reverse the roles and actually be ringside for a live Tyson fight, after the 54-year-old declared earlier this year he was ready to make a comeback.

The former 'Baddest man on the planet' has been linked to many potential fights and was offered $20 million to fight for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship but he turned the offer down.

The UFC lightweight champion's future is also unknown at the moment. He has a potential future fight with interim champion Justin Gaethje, who beat Tony Ferguson after filling in for Khabib earlier this year.

However the death of Nurmagomedov's father, Abdulmanap, had left question marks over his future with good friend Daniel Cormier suggesting the Russian might not return to action, this year or potentially ever.

Topics: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Boxing News, Justin Gaethje, UFC News, MMA News, Boxing, UFC, MMA

Ryan Sidle

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