VIDEO | Khabib Nurmagomedov has a piece of advice for Zabit Magomedsharipov

Dagestani featherweight Zabit Magomedsharipov has all the makings of a future star. In the opinion of new UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, however, Magomedsharipov would be wise to start learning English in order to supercharge is rise to superstardom.

“This guy need to improve his English, brother,” Nurmagomedov said after ambushing a backstage interview with Magomedsharipov at UFC 223. “Without English, he cannot promote himself. He need English.”

Watch Nurmagomedov pass this advice on in the video at the top of this post.

English is certainly not a prerequisite for stardom in MMA—Fedor Emelianenko and Anderson Silva did just fine without it—but it has helped elevate many fighters into the limelight. The best, recent example of this phenomenon would probably be French-Cameroonian heavyweight Francis Ngannou, whose English has improved steadily as he’s evolved into one of MMA’s biggest stars.

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Zabit Magomedsharipov both fought at UFC 223 last weekend. Both Dagestani talents won impressively on the card, with Nurmagomedov picking up a title-winning decision defeat of Al Iaquinta, and Magomedsharipov authoring a Fight of the Night winning decision defeat of Kyle Bochniak.

What do you think of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s advice to the rising star Zabit Magomedsharipov? Join the conversation in the comments section below!

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 4/12/2018.