“I Have No Plans to Continue Fighting”- Khabib Nurmagomedov Shuts Down the Door for Dana White and the UFC

UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov spoke out to the fans and the media via RT Sport on his retirement. Nurmagomedov has been in the news lately as UFC President Dana White has already begun teasing a return to action. Chiefly, it’s not been a month since Khabib announced his retirement from MMA at UFC 254.

The Dagestani mauler submitted interim lightweight champion Justin Gaethje in the second round and then laid down his gloves in the cage. What’s more, this move caught fans off guard as they believed he would fight until he reached the coveted 30-0 status. Although Khabib made his intentions clear-cut, Dana White has spoken out on multiple occasions that he’ll be back for another bout.

Khabib Nurmagomedov shuts down the idea of a return

The 29-0 lightweight GOAT candidly quashed any speculation about his return that has made the rounds. Furthermore, he explained that there wasn’t much left to check off on the list of career accomplishments. It’s hard to argue that Khabib has anything to prove at this stage of his storied UFC tenure.

“There will always be rumors about my comeback because Dana White or other promoters who could replace him in the future will always want me to fight. It’s all about big money, views, and media coverage so I am sure they will keep chasing me. You have just finished one fight and fans right away start looking forward to your next one. They always want the show to go on but I have no plans to continue fighting.”

“What if I fight one more time? They will always have another contender for me who is on a 7-8 fight win streak, another wrestler with great striking. They are very good at raising heroes, building up big stars. It’s just a never-ending story.” (via RT Sport)

“Who else is there to fight for me?”- ‘The Eagle’

Khabib Nurmagomedov was introspective about his journey and posed several thought-provoking questions about his career to the media. He explained that no one piqued his competitive drive and that money would henceforth be derived from other sources.

“Of course, I could possibly fight until I’m forty or even 45- like Fedor but there must be purpose to it, a goal. My goal was to reach the summit and I did it, so I don’t see any competitive interest to stay in the game. Who else is there to fight for me? And even if there is one- my mission has been accomplished. Of course, I am in my prime and there’s still tons of money I could earn but I had a different goal. And as for money- from now on we will earn it somewhere else.”

Fans would definitely have one suggestion for Khabib in terms of potential opponents- Georges St-Pierre. The aforementioned fighters are arguably two of the best, and fans want to know who’s definitively better. Chiefly, it seems as though Nurmagomedov is content to let that question lay in wait going forward.