Artem Lobov, the Irish-Russian former UFC competitor known as “The Russian Hammer,” has reached a new milestone on the mats, earning his purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The promotion, awarded by coach Sam McNally at BRU Grappling, was announced by Lobov on social media, where he reflected on a long road through the ranks.
“3 blue belts later I finally got my purple from @sam_mc_nally Thank you so much to Sam and everyone @bru_grappling for all the help and guidance! Special thanks to @coach_kavanagh @sbgnerijus and everyone at @sbgireland for years of great training! Extra special thanks to @richiesmullen I’d be getting a 4th blue without him :)”
Born August 11, 1986, in Gorky, Russia, Lobov has long called Dublin home and built his competitive career at SBG Ireland, one of Europe’s most respected combat sports academies.
A longtime training partner of Conor McGregor, he appeared as a cast member on TUF: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber before going on to compete in the UFC’s featherweight division and later in bare-knuckle competition.
Lobov’s relationship with McGregor, however, has changed dramatically in recent years. The former teammates became embroiled in a legal dispute after Lobov claimed he played a key role in the creation of Proper No. 12 Irish whiskey and was promised a stake in the business that never materialized. The lawsuit marked a bitter end to one of MMA’s closest friendships.
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Lobov also claimed McGregor was far from fully prepared for his UFC 229 title match against Khabib Nurmagomedov. According to Lobov, the former two-division champion trained far less than expected for one of the biggest matches of his career.
“I know that fig ht because he didn’t train at all for that fig ht. Twice a week, he was training for Khabib,” Lobov said. He also recalled trying to convince McGregor to ramp up his preparation, saying, “Conor, come on. Let’s go to Vegas, man. We have to do it. Come on, brother.” Lobov claimed McGregor brushed him off, replying, “No, f*** off. You just want to go on a horse.”
Lobov contrasted that approach with the work ethic McGregor displayed during his championship run, suggesting the difference in preparation played a major role in the outcome.
Looking back on the match, which ended with McGregor losing via fourth-round RNC, Lobov said, “When I saw the fig ht, I was like, ‘Oh my god, if only you trained four times a week, you probably would have beaten him.'” He argued that even a modest increase in training could have significantly changed how the match unfolded.
