""I've been to [Dagestan], I've trained there, Tsarukyan said on the "One Night Steiny" podcast. "Lots of sparring partners, lot of hard workers. They train so hard in the gym. The young generation don't have a lot of opportunity out of the gym, so they train a lot, they sacrifice, they have good discipline, that's why they achieve a lot. If the UFC lets fighters from Dagestan and Chechnya come here and if they sign them, we're gonna see all Dagestani and Chechen fighters.""
"While fighters from the Caucasus mountains dominate almost every major MMA promotion in the world, they often face criticism for their grappling-heavy style. As most of them are not fluent in English, it hinders their ability to promote themselves as well. Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev consistently encourage Dagestani fighters to improve their English. Nurmagomedov recently condemned promotions for cutting fighters who don't engage in antics and trash talk."
Arman Tsarukyan trained in Dagestan and credits the region's dense pool of sparring partners and relentless gym culture for producing elite fighters. Young athletes in Dagestan and Chechnya often lack opportunities outside sport, driving them to sacrifice, train intensively, and maintain strict discipline. Tsarukyan believes that if the UFC recruits and signs fighters from those regions on merit, Dagestani and Chechen competitors could come to dominate the roster. Fighters from the Caucasus already excel across major MMA promotions but face criticism for a grappling-heavy style and struggle to promote themselves because many are not fluent in English.
Read at Sherdog
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