The fight game must be one of the most anxiety-inducing professions in the world.
Stepping into the cage to go to war with a complete stranger, surrounded by TV cameras and thousands of screaming fans who are baying for blood. The battle to control the overwhelming rushes of adrenaline as you walk into the unknown can make or break many fighters.
As Jeremy Kennedy (19-5) prepares to enter the PFL smartcage for the opening round of the organization's 2025 world tournament next Thursday, he's taking comfort in the fact that not only are two of the other fighters (Gabriel Braga and Adam Borics) in the eight-man bracket former opponents of his, his opponent in the opening round (Movlid Khaybulaev) is a former training partner.
Khaybulaev (20-0-1), who won the PFL world tournament back in 2021, is a team-mate of UFC lightweight champion at American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), and Kennedy is very familar with what his Dagestani opponent brings to the table.
"I trained with them in 2021 during the pandemic", Kennedy told me during an exclusive interview this week. "AKA was closed and California was a nightmare, so they were all up in here up in Las Vegas at the UFC Apex. We have the same management and so I spent about six weeks training with them then.
"Then before Islam's last fight (against Renato Moicano) in January, I was helping him out again here near the end of his camp and Movlid was there. I even worked with Movlid. I knew I was in the Grand Prix, he didn't at the time.
"I get along with him great, so yeah, we trained then, and then three weeks later I got the (news) that he's my first opponent and he's in the tournament, so it's funny how it all played out. That's the MMA world man, it's crazy how things all all play out".
Kennedy Looking To Make A Statement
While many fighters might struggle to wrap their head around the idea of squaring off against somebody they've trained with, Kennedy is looking at the situation in a positive light.
"This is a little bit new, but I kind of like it, you know?", he says, smiling. "It gives me comfortability in the sense of I'm not intimidated, and sometimes when you're fighting a guy and all you do is see pictures of him and videos of him fighting other people, um, you never know how it's going to feel.
"But I've actually physically felt him, you know? And when I see him standing across the cage, it could just as easily be at the Apex down the road. So that kind of brings me a little bit more grounding and less anxiety around fights that I typically get".
Dagestani fighters have built a strong reputation in recent years as some of the most fearsome fighters in the game, winning titles in a multitude of high-level organizations. But having worked extensively with Makhachev and Khaybulaev under the watchful eye of former UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Kennedy isn't fearful of the challenge that awaits him in Florida next Thursday.
"It takes away that little bit of mystique I suppose", says Kennedy, "especially with the Dagestanis too. They have that aura with the grappling. I've been in those rooms you know so I know what that feels like. I know what they go through, I know what their training camps look like. I'm just ready for this one man.
"He's definitely the toughest matchup in this tournament stylistically, and just his record and resume, everything, but I'm happy I have this one, you know? I feel like him bringing his undefeated record and (being a) former champion and everything, that it's gonna be great to first of all hand him his first loss, and then second that it's a great way to kick into this tournament, taking out arguably the number one seed
"A win like that makes a massive statement, I suppose, to kick things off and then I think on my side of the bracket we've got (Nathan) Kelly and the Korean guy (Tae Kyun) Kim, I don't know much about them but that'll be a pretty big statement heading into that matchup too".
PFL World Tournament: Round One takes place at Universal Studios, Florida on Thursday, April 3rd.
