Javier Mendez explains why he wishes Umar Nurmagomedov told him he broke his hand at UFC 311

Javier Mendez, the head coach of Umar Nurmagomedov, wishes his fighter told him he broke his hand.

Nurmagomedov revealed after UFC 311 that he broke his hand early in the fight. Early on, Nurmagomedov was having success against Merab Dvalishvili, but he lost the final three rounds to lose the decision and fall short of winning the belt.

However, Umar Nurmagomedov never told Mendez he broke his hand and the coach wishes he did as he says he would have changed the game plan.

Javier Mendez REVEALS Umar never told him and Khabib he broke his hand during his fight with Merab at #UFC311 with them only finding out after the fight!

“I didn't know, that Umar broke his head. He didn't tell us. It's one thing. If he would have told us, we would have changed… pic.twitter.com/AGKj2da0Rd

— Submission Radio (@SubmissionRadio) January 21, 2025

“If he had told me he broke his hand, I would have changed the game plan. Khabib and I would have changed the game plan completely around because Khabib is a great corner,” Mendez said to Submission Radio about Nurmagomedov. “He’s one of the great ones that I’ve encountered cornering with. So, we could have changed the game plan, but we weren’t told. Umar didn’t tell us. That just shows you the kind of warrior he is. We would have changed the plan had he told us that. Why would we do what we did, having him throw that broken hand, if we knew he broke his hand? That would be stupid.

Javier Mendez says he would have told Umar Nurmagomedov to kick more

“I would have had him kick more. Keep the distance, keep him at a distance, keep kicking because he’s a great kicker. But, no, the game plan was to stay inside and pick him apart, and I was wondering what the hell? And he kept putting his head down. He kept putting his head down more than often, and I’m like, ‘What the hell?’ I go, ‘Okay, Merab must be that much tougher.’ And yeah, he is that tough. But I didn’t know that Umar broke his hand. He didn’t tell us,” Mendez continued.

As Javier Mendez says, had Umar Nurmagomedov told him he broke his hand, he thinks the fight would have gone differently. He believes Khabib Nurmagomedov would have also told Umar the right adjustments to make.

With the loss at UFC 311, Nurmagomedov is now 18-1 as a pro and is 6-1 in the UFC.