Champions League and Premier League winner Patrice Evra will be making his MMA debut on May 23 in Paris, under the PFL banner.
DAZN News spoke to the Frenchman about his inspirations ahead of his foray into combat sports.
"People will say it’s an easy answer, but Khabib [Nurmagomedov]," Evra said. "Now he’s like a brother. I admire him greatly for his life philosophy."
Nurmagomedov's friendship with Evra has grown to the point that the former Manchester United player introduced the UFC Hall of Famer to his former manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
Evra plans to train with the retired UFC lightweight champion during his training camp.
"I'm going to train with him - I hope he doesn’t break my arm," Evra said. "I have this feeling that he loves me, but also wants to kill me. He told me, 'No, no, my brother, I would even fight for you.' He’s truly an incredible and very respectful person."
The Frenchman also spoke about his relationship with Cédric Doumbé.
"When I saw the fight against Jordan [Zébo], I actually felt bad for Jordan too. I also think about him - how much he was waiting for that moment," Evra said. "Cédric talking, then knocking him out in under a minute. The entrance... people laughed, but I didn’t. It was beautiful. I'm happy for my brother Cédric. »
Now on the other side of the fence, Evra expressed his support for Zébo.
"But what Jordan endured - people should respect that," he said. :It’s easy to talk from behind a screen, sending messages like “yeah Jordan sucks.' Go train with him."
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