Former UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov has expressed concerns surrounding the potential impact of esports and gaming on young people.
The former Lightweight Champion recently shared his thoughts about the industry with former F1 Esports driver Cem Bölükbaşı.
During the conversation, Nurmagomedov spoke on the downsides of young people deciding to commit a large part of their lives to playing games and competing in esports competitions. He argues that only a small percentage of players reach the professional level, while others invest similar amounts of time without achieving success.
Khabib Nurmagomedov also compared gaming and esports to physical training environments that encourage socialisation and structure, claiming that traditional sporting settings offer greater opportunities for development.
“In the gym, you meet people,” said the undefeated fighter. “This is social. But when you’re sitting playing computer games, your mind is changed. Even if you don’t become UFC champion, at least you know people. But computer games, I’m a big hater.”
Bölükbaşı is one of several sim racing drivers to successfully transition to real-world motorsport. In 2020, he won the Formula Renault Esport Series, beating the likes of Franco Colapinto and Isack Hadjar, who have since gone on to compete in Formula One.
“It’s not very unsocial anymore,” Bölükbaşı replied. “You have four or five teammates that you see every day. You play together, next to each other. It’s not online anymore.”
In May 2025, German car manufacturer Porsche opened a dedicated facility enabling its factory sim racing team to practice and train in a professional environment.
Sim Racing as a Pathway to Real-World Motorsport
While Nurmagomedov and Bölükbaşı shared contrasting views on the impact of gaming and esports, sim racing remains a discipline where virtual drivers can transfer their skills into the real world.
On February 5th, Team Redline driver James Baldwin joined the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team‘s simulator programme, where he will lend his skills to provide feedback to engineers working on the team’s real-world F1 car.
Elsewhere, four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen continues to support sim racers transferring to real motorsport through his own racing team. Verstappen.com Racing participates in the GT World Challenge Europe Series, with British sim racer Chris Lulham competing as one of the team’s three drivers.
