Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov 'opens eyes, speaks to Khabib' during recovery from Covid-19 stroke, says manager
The father and trainer of UFC champ Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abdulmanap, has opened his eyes and spoken to his son during his convalescence from a stroke brought on by Covid-19, according to the fighter's manager Ali Abdelaziz.
Nurmagomedov Sr is currently recovering in a Moscow hospital after undergoing emergency heart bypass surgery and twice being entered into a medically-induced coma following a stroke caused by coronavirus, most recently on May 19.
The 57-year-old's condition since has been described as "serious but stable", by doctors and now Abdelaziz says he is making "progress" and is "responding" to those around him and even managed to speak to his son, the UFC's undefeated 155 lbs champion, who had earlier confirmed on Instagram the serious state of his father.
"Khabib is very strong, his family is very strong and his father is very strong," Abdelaziz told ESPN.
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"He's improving. He opened his eyes, responding a little bit, good sign. Allah is in control. We have faith he will be better, but at the end of the day, it's completely up to his health whether it progresses or not. But he's progressing, and we're very happy about this."
Abdulmanap first fell ill in his native Makhachkala, Dagestan, in April but was misdiagnosed as having simply pneumonia-like symptoms. It was only when his condition deteriorated his family sent him to a military hospital in the Russian capital, where he was diagnosed with having the deadly virus.
Upon his arrival, Khabib, 31, was offered to be tested for the disease, but instead insisted all focus be centered on his father, who later suffered a stroke and underwent the emergency operation to restore normal blood flow around his body.
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