Robert Whittaker has praised the undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov as a "phenomenal" UFC fighter and admitted that he is a "huge fan" of him.
UFC lightweight champ Khabib, 31, boasts an unbeaten record of 28 MMA wins and is ranked second in UFC's pound-for-pound rankings.
Speaking ahead of Saturday's interim middleweight title bout against Israel Adesanya, Whittaker believes that there is nobody out there that can stop the 'Eagle.'
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The New Zealand-born Australian UFC fighter told MMA Fighting: "I'm a huge fan of Khabib.
"I think he's phenomenal, honestly.
"I think what he does is crazy. I think his skillset is amazing. I think his cardio and his endurance is ridiculous.
"I think he's amazing, I'm a huge fan.
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"What I like about him more than anything is, for one, he's a straight character, I really admire and respect that.
"And two, everybody knows what he's going to do -- every single person -- and no-one can stop him.
"I think that's phenomenal."
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Khabib returned to the octagon last month against Dustin Poirier and successfully unified the UFC lightweight championship.
UFC president Dana White has said that Tony Ferguson is next in line to fight Khabib for the title, but he hasn't ruled out a rematch with Conor McGregor coming next.
Irish MMA superstar McGregor, 31, has been out of the octagon since his stunning defeat to the Russian star in 2018.
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But the 'Notorious' has called out Khabib and has hinted at a UFC return in December.
Speaking after Khabib's victory over Poirier, White hailed the UFC lightweight champ as a "pretty special fighter" and believes that he is not far off from becoming the 'GOAT of UFC.'
He continued: "I think he's a couple of fights away from GOAT status.
"To go undefeated for this long, for this many fights.
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"He's staring down the barrel of a pretty special career."
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Robert Whittaker, UFC News, MMA News, UFC, eagle, MMA, Israel Adesanya