UFC President Dana White (R) speaks with UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov (Photo by Isaac Brekken/Getty Images)
Dana White tried to get Khabib Nurmagomedov to return from his UFC retirement
Khabib Nurmagomedov opened up on his latest meeting with Dana White. This took place before UFC 260 and Khabib ended up officially retiring from the promotion.
However, White tried his best to get The Eagle flying again. The UFC president held several meetings with Khabib after he retired from the UFC.
White enticed Khabib with a rematch against Conor McGregor too, with this taking place on the eve of UFC 257.
That wasn’t enough for Khabib either, but White wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Khabib was speaking on the UFC 260 weigh-in show and brought up how difficult it is to negotiate with the UFC president (h/t BJ Penn):
“It’s very hard to say no to Dana White. I’m going to be very honest because this guy, sometimes he is nice. Sometimes he is not nice. Sometimes he says one thing.
“Anyways, it was very honest, real talk with two real men. This is what I feel. In the last meeting, he come and say, ‘Hey, what are we going to do?’ I say, ‘Nothing changed. Nothing changed.’ I think, my opinion, lightweight division has to go on. I don’t want to hold division.”
Saying no to White is extremely difficult but this should be counted as a win for Khabib. The Eagle might have retired with a 29-0 record but him beating White at his own game also counts as a win.
While it is unlikely for the Eagle to return to fighting, Khabib has found a new profession. The Eagle is now a coach for several stars and is 2-0 in the month of March 2021.
Khabib coached Islam Makhachev to a dominant win over Drew Dober at UFC 259. The former UFC Lightweight champion was back in the Octagon for his cousin, Abubakar’s clash.
Khabib helped the Welterweight to his first win in his UFC career, and that was dominant too. Khabib is still training regularly with his friends but he still has an eye for a rival or two.
He first hit out at Jon Jones claiming that Bones was not the GOAT. Khabib also warned Tony Ferguson over his next fight as El Cucuy takes on Beneil Dariush.
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