UFC legend Diego Sanchez reveals his favorite MMA fighter

Diego Sanchez has long-been one of the most fascinating fighters in Mixed Martial Arts. The 38-year-old is now coming to the end of his career, and revealed that his favorite fighter is lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

He tweeted his support for the Russian, and said,

‘My favorite fighter is Khabib, praying he stays undefeated.’

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>My favorite fighter is <a href=”https://twitter.com/TeamKhabib?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@TeamKhabib</a> praying he finishes undeafeated 🙏🏼 Mashallah🧿</p>&mdash; Diego Sanchez UFC (@DiegoSanchezUFC) <a href=”https://twitter.com/DiegoSanchezUFC/status/1303122813906087936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>September 8, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>

Having won the Middleweight tournament at The Ultimate Fighter 1 way back in 2005, Sanchez has certainly seen his fair share of elite talents.

‘The nightmare’ is one of only three fighters to compete in four different UFC weight classes (alongside BJ Penn and Kenny Florian).

As he prepares for his next bout at welterweight, it was probably Sanchez’s time at 155lbs that delivered his most exciting fights. The eccentric star has been in more ‘fight of the year’ bouts than anyone and has won a ‘fight of the night bonus’ on a remarkable seven occasions.

In singling out Khabib, Sanchez has lauded a guy who is arguably the greatest lightweight of all-time.

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Easier said than done</p>&mdash; Diego Sanchez UFC (@DiegoSanchezUFC) <a href=”https://twitter.com/DiegoSanchezUFC/status/1303123502464077824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>September 8, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>

There aren’t many fighters who remain undefeated at the highest level, and Khabib’s 28-0 record includes wins over some big names including Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor and former champion Rafael Dos Anjos.

Sanchez will be well aware of how difficult it is to maintain an undefeated record. His own career began with an impressive 17-fight winning streak that spanned almost five years between 2002-07 before coming to and end against Josh Koscheck at UFC 69.

Khabib will be looking to further add to his legacy when he defends the lightweight belt against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.

Gaethje is widely believed to be the biggest threat that Khabib has ever faced.

‘The Highlight’ has finished all of his last four fights and appeared to have raised his game to a new level when he beat former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson.

Given his love for Khabib and the respect he has for ‘The Eagle’s’ undefeated record, it’s surely a fight that Sanchez will be keeping a close eye on.

Will Khabib be the GOAT at lightweight if he beats Gaethje?