Javier Mendez - trash talks and Quotes
Loyalty Over Ego, Systems Over Stars
In a sport obsessed with individual brilliance, Javier Mendez built an empire by doing the opposite. As the founder of American Kickboxing Academy, Mendez became the quiet architect behind some of the most dominant resumes in MMA history. He isn’t the loudest voice in the corner—but when he speaks, champions listen. His legacy isn’t measured in belts alone; it’s measured in systems that never break under pressure.
Mendez’s verbal style is defined by loyalty, restraint, and strategic clarity. He doesn’t chase innovation for novelty’s sake. He protects what works. His defining quote
“It’s about Father’s Plan”
isn’t branding; it’s doctrine. Stick to wrestling. Apply pressure. Eliminate ego. Execute. That philosophy, forged alongside Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, became the backbone of a global fighting system that blends Western kickboxing with Eastern sambo and wrestling into one ruthless whole.
On SportzOnly, Javier Mendez anchors the Coaching Excellence and Wisdom categories because he mastered the hardest skill in MMA: aligning personalities to a plan. Coaching champions isn’t about collecting talent—it’s about maintaining discipline when talent tempts shortcuts. Mendez repeatedly chose patience over spectacle, drilling fundamentals until they became inevitabilities.
His protectiveness and pride shine when he talks about Khabib Nurmagomedov. There’s no mysticism—only certainty. Steamrolls. Chin. Heart. Mendez’s bias is earned, not blind. And that same clarity extends to Islam Makhachev, the system’s sharpest successor, whose composure and pressure reflect a decade of adherence to the plan rather than reinvention.
Mendez’s respect for elite peers reveals his competitive honesty. When discussing threats like Kamaru Usman, he doesn’t hunt weaknesses; he prepares to impose will. At the highest level, he understands, it’s not about tricks—it’s about who breaks first. That mindset also shaped champions like Daniel Cormier and Luke Rockhold, each molded differently yet governed by the same discipline.
What elevates Mendez further is his refusal to live in the past. His gaze is always forward—toward the next generation, the next camp, the next execution. The plan never stops. That continuity is why AKA remains relevant across eras while other dynasties fade.
When the Lights Are Bright: The Corner That Calms Storms
Javier Mendez is a master of the corner moment—when chaos peaks and clarity matters. His instruction to “stay on the plan” during the McGregor fight distilled everything he believes: trust preparation, ignore the noise, finish the work. This page pulls back the curtain on those moments, including preparation against artists like Charles Oliveira, showing how opposing coaches game-plan for brilliance without abandoning fundamentals.
Below is a chronological timeline of Javier Mendez’s most revealing statements—on loyalty, mindset, and the discipline that builds champions. Read closely. Fighters win fights. Coaches build eras.
Javier Mendez's Statements About Other Fighters
“You know, if the UFC offers him, no problem. I mean, I can't answer for Islam, but I'm saying no problem. Islam and Ali [Abdelaziz], who I consider the greatest manager in the business, will do the right thing for Islam... But let's face it, we're going to meet him eventually, whether it's the White House or whether it's another time. Let the UFC decide that, I say. But we're going to meet him eventually if he wants to continue to come up. But I seriously doubt Islam will want to come down”
– about potential fight with Ilia Topuria via Submission Radio
“His camp also alluded to the fact that Islam is easy to figure out — I don’t know what their plan is, I really don’t. All I know is we are prepared for a super tough JDM and don’t care what I hear on any side. I know what we are dealing with we’re dealing with a hell of a champion that we respect.I’ve watched the fight between him and Belal Muhammad seven times, and I’ve never done that with anybody. Seven times I've watched it, because I respect him. He is good. I believe we are going to beat him, but we are doing our homework”
– via Submission Radio, on the intense preparation for Jack Della Maddalena
“He's got decent wrestling. From people I've spoken to that have trained with him, he's got this decent jiu”
– jitsu also. So, he's almost the complete package, but he's not. He lacks the kicking area. So, the weakest link on him would be the kicking area. And then you have to test your grappling with him to see if your if yours is better than his. We've yet to see how great it is. It's not great.
“Ilia Topuria, I would say with him, stay out of boxing range one million percent stay out of boxing range. He's got the best boxing in the business in MMA. He's got it so much that he even thinks he can be [Terence] Crawford. You'd need to work your kicks angles with him, knees, Muay Thai would be some a good specialty.”
Read all statements about Ilia Topuria
“His father was to me one of the greatest trainers of all time and he had the great mindset... He had no striking per se, but he had great ground, great judo, great sambo and in jiu jitsu... And he was super successful with it, and his students are the ones that are now becoming the champions. Most of what he [Khabib] got, he got from his father, and I added the little special touches. So, in other words... I made the house really pretty, but that the framework was there and that was [his] father.”
– via KnowTime podcast
“Movsar, look at him, they are passing him up because not that many people are interested to see him, even though he deserves it. He is number one in my opinion, but is he getting it? How come Sean O’Malley got title shots after lacklustre performance? Now, I would think that he is going back to the drawing boards, cause again, the eyeballs are not going on him. So his marketability is not there anymore”
– via Know Time podcast
“When he gets in there with Islam you're going to find out a whole different story.”
Read all statements about Islam Makhachev
“When he gets in there with Islam you're going to find out a whole different story.”
Read all statements about Jack Della Maddalena