Khabib Nurmagomedov, the undefeated UFC lightweight champion, left the door open for the 30th fight inside the Octagon.
Promotion president Dana White said that if the two light fights next week – Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier and Dan Hooker vs. Michael Chandler – are spectacular, Nurmagomedov would consider returning to fight with one of the winners.
“If these guys could do anything special, Khabib would fight them,” White said Saturday in the UFC Fight Night: Holloway Vs. Kattar in Abu Dhabi
Nurmagomedov has the chance to go 30-0 perfectly with a victory in a potential comeback fight.
Nurmagomedov, one of the world’s foremost Muslim athletes, and White met in person behind the scenes during a MMA event of the United Arab Emirates Warriors in Abu Dhabi on Friday night, which was co-promoted by the new organization Eagle FC of Nurmagomedov.
In October, Nurmagomedov surprisingly announced his retirement after winning the second round in front of Justin Gaethje at UFC 254. Leading in that fight, Nurmagomedov was saddened by his father’s death last summer due to complications from COVID. -19. Nurmagomedov’s father, Abdulmanap, was also his head coach and closest confidant.
Nurmagomedov (29-0) is the best ranked ESPN fighter in the world. Born in Dagestan, an autonomous republic of Russia, he won all 13 of his UFC fights, a record for most consecutive UFC light victories. Nurmagomedov, 32, holds the longest lightweight title in UFC history and is linked to most lightweight UFC defense (3). He defeated former champions Gaethje, McGregor, Poirier and Rafael dos Anjos.