Khabib Nurmagomedov has already stated that he will rest his MMA gloves with one more fight soon after his title defense against Justin Gaethje. Khabib is currently on a 12 fight win streak with notable victories over Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor, Rafael dos Anjos among many. Talking about Khabib’s last fight inside the octagon, he has stated that he would like to face Georges St-Pierre before retiring. However, he also added that in a scenario where he cannot fight GSP, he is open to fighting any fighter who can beat Dustin Poirier. Subsequently, Khabib Nurmagomedov also opened up the idea of a rematch with Conor McGregor. However, for now, everything points at Tony Ferguson vs Dustin Poirier in the co-main event of UFC 249.
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When everything is said and done, Khabib mentions, that he wants to retire for good and not return to compete full-time inside the octagon. In a recent interview with Russian outlet Sports Express, Khabib shared his thoughts on retirement.
Khabib Nurmagomedov wants to stay retired after calling time
It’s hard not to agree with Khabib Nurmagomedov. Most of the fighters who have retired early in their careers have come back to compete again inside the octagon. With Luke Rockhold, Alexander Gustafsson, Fabricio Werdum as recent examples of fighters who came back after retirement, the list is truly endless. However, Khabib has no hopes of coming back if he calls it time soon after his fight following the Gaethje title defense.
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“90 percent of athletes who end their careers return. There may be some moments, but I think that if I finish, then I finish. And even if there is something [performances after the announcement of retirement], it will be some kind of demonstration performances. After completing the second time, climbing Olympus will, of course, be impossible. But I don’t exclude some moments… But if I finish in the UFC, then 100 percent will not return to the UFC.” Khabib stated.
Khabib also stated that it would be difficult even for him to come back and perform equally efficiently like the first time. While Khabib Nurmagomedov did leave the doors open for exhibitions and demonstrations post-retirement, he stated clearly that once he is done, there’s no coming back and competing inside the octagon. It will be interesting to see if Khabib Nurmagomedov will stay undefeated before he calls retirement.
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