UFC 268 allows Edmen Shahbazyan to show his progress

3 years ago 289

Edmen Shahbazyan’s vocation way erstwhile appeared arsenic effortless arsenic the abbreviated thrust from his parents’ location to Glendale Fighting Club. Occasional stops successful Las Vegas and New York to dismantle opponents erstwhile portended UFC greatness.

Recent detours successful the signifier of consecutive losses, however, person near the roadworthy strewn with “what ifs” and “shoulda couldas.”

The 23-year-old middleweight and his squad judge they person made the indispensable adjustments to get Shahbazyan backmost connected way Saturday erstwhile helium faces Nassourdine Imavov astatine UFC 268 successful Madison Square Garden successful New York.

Imavov (10-3) was calved successful Dagestan, Russia, wherever wrestling is practically portion of their DNA, but the 25-year-old is regarded arsenic much of a striker.

And that suits Shahbazyan well.

“Every fight, I think, is big,” said Edmond Tarverdyan, Shahbazyan’s manager astatine Glendale Fighting Club. “But this 1 is just, I mean, I cognize the guy’s not successful the apical 10 oregon thing similar that, but still, there’s ever the pressure, you know, warring idiosyncratic that everybody expects you to win. But I mean, that’s been happening to him lately.”

Starting a promising MMA vocation 11-0, with 4 wins successful the UFC, means added unit and tougher opponents, nary substance however young you are.

Losing to apical 10 veterans similar Derek Brunson and Jack Hermansson – “He went against the champion wrestlers successful the division,” Tarverdyan said – not lone derailed the hype surrounding Shahbazyan, but it exposed a spread successful his game.

Tarverdyan and UFC fable Ronda Rousey – who represents Shahbazyan years aft utilizing him arsenic a grooming spouse astatine GFC – reached retired to chap UFC large and two-time Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier to spot if helium and his squad could enactment their young complaint done a clang course.

Once Cormier said yes, it wasn’t truthful much, “Do you cognize your mode to San Jose?” It was much like, “Get your butt to San Jose.”

On conscionable a mates days’ notice, Shahbazyan made the thrust 335 miles northbound to American Kickboxing Academy, which contempt its name, is renowned arsenic the location of MMA wrestling legends, including erstwhile UFC large Khabib Nurmagomedov and respective of his chap grapplers from Dagestan.

“The Russians were there. The Dagestanis were there,” Shahbazyan said with a smile. “With each those guys there, they’re beasts. I had bully enactment there.”

It’s 1 happening to spell bid successful different gym. It’s an wholly antithetic ambiance to permission location and measurement extracurricular your comfortableness portion and look wrestlers, doubly a day, looking to situation you and deterioration you down.

Cormier came distant impressed.

“That kid is tough. Every day, helium ne'er ran distant from a workout. The kid ne'er ran distant from a wrestling workout,” the erstwhile UFC airy heavyweight and heavyweight champion said. “I mean, determination are guys that travel successful there, they speech astir however bully they privation to get, however overmuch enactment they’re consenting to enactment in. By Tuesday, they’re taking days off. I’m talking guys that person been champions, guys that are champions, that travel into AKA and go, ‘You guys are insane.’”

The anticipation is that astir 2 months of grooming successful San Jose person spurred Shahbazyan’s carnal and intelligence growth. Away from the comforts of home, helium had to fend disconnected takedowns and fend for his ain nutrient and bash his ain laundry.

“Armenian kids turn up with their parents doing everything for them,” Tarverdyan said. “At times, we request to permission them alone, fto them turn up, much mature.”

Said Cormier, who volition besides beryllium ringside commentating astatine UFC 268: “I deliberation that helium got better. But I don’t adjacent deliberation that it was conscionable wrestling. I deliberation that helium was capable to enactment himself successful uncomfortable situations. A batch of times, erstwhile it’s uncomfortable, it’s unfamiliar. And you tin enactment yourself done that, erstwhile you tin mentally hole yourself to cognize that what you’re going to beryllium doing is truthful retired of your ain comfort.”

Buoyed by his San Jose experience, Shahbazyan coiled up parlaying that into grooming respective days a week with jiu-jitsu specializer Jason Manly successful Las Vegas astatine the UFC Performance Institute.

There, helium took vantage of the grooming facilities, arsenic good arsenic the nutrient and massages, to assistance him physically. From a intelligence aspect, grooming successful an Octagon, with the aforesaid lighting and canvas he’ll consciousness Saturday successful New York, bolstered his confidence.

“Yeah, you person to diversify, spell to antithetic places,” Shahbazyan said. “See however everybody is there, similar however they train, and conscionable get fundamentally acquisition successful antithetic gyms and knowledge. You summation knowledge.”

Saturday presents a caller acceptable of problems successful Imavov. The French nationalist is 2-1 successful the UFC and coming disconnected a second-round TKO of Ian Heinisch successful July.

If it does enactment connected the feet, wherever Cormier is impressed with Shahbazyan – “He was specified a large boxer … I was precise amazed astatine however good helium moved and honestly his boxing fundamentals” – Shahbazyan could adhd to his 9 knockouts successful 11 victories.

If it goes to the ground, Shahbazyan volition beryllium prepared. For immoderate script and immoderate outcome.

“I deliberation I’m increasing still, increasing mentally and physically, and I gained a batch of acquisition arsenic a young fighter. The much fights I do, I consciousness much calm and relaxed. I consciousness amended each time,” helium said. “Even though my past 2 were losses, I learned from the losses. I didn’t instrumentality it arsenic similar a nonaccomplishment and was down connected myself. I mislaid to bully guys. I person country to grow. And the sky’s the limit.”