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Former UFC lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov could have had any fight he wanted before he retired in 2020, however, the only one that actually interested him was a dream clash with welterweight legend Georges St-Pierre.
Before he left the sport behind nearly two years ago, Nurmagomedov (29-0) had the MMA world in the palm of his hand. He was an undefeated UFC champion who rarely faced resistance in the Octagon. The fight possibilities for him were endless. He could have faced the next top contender in his talent-rich division. Maybe scored another massive payday in a rematch with mainstream superstar Conor McGregor, or even moved up to fight welterweight champion Kamaru Usman to become the promotion’s latest double-champ.
However, none of that really interested him. During a guest appearance on the Full Send Podcast, the 33-year-old admitted that for his fights against McGregor and Dustin Poirier, his fire to compete was not at the same level as it was in his rise to the top. But, if there was any matchup that would have pulled the very best out of him at that point in his career, it would have been a dream fight against him and his father’s favorite fighter St-Pierre (26-2).
Khabib Nurmagomedov says Georges St-Pierre was the only fight he wanted before he retired
“When I was a kid, like 16, 18, [St-Pierre] was already like a legend. A champion. He was my father’s favorite fighter. Fighting with him; I know this is never gonna happen but honestly, if I have a chance to fight with someone I’m gonna pick GSP,” Nurmagomedov said.
Before his final fight against Justin Gaethje in October 2020, there had been rumors of a possible bout happening between “Eagle” and “Rush.” Obviously, that never materialized, and Nurmagomedov says it didn’t happen for a few reasons. The first is the fact that the version of GSP that he’d fight would have been nearly 10 years removed from his prime. And that truth diminished some of the value in a matchup with the man he looked up to as a teenager.
The ‘Eagle’ explains why a GSP fight didn’t come together
“When I was on top, when it was my prime time, it was not his prime time,” he explained. … “Almost ten years ago his time was finished. My opinion, his prime time was 2010, ’11, ’12, but ’13 it was not his time. Remember when he fought with Johny Hendricks? In this time, I feel he’s not enjoying [competing] inside the cage. He’s not hungry anymore. I don’t know about his feelings, but this is what I feel. For this sport you have to be hungry. If you’re not hungry, if you don’t really want this, you have to finish.”
Yet, facing a version of St-Pierre passed his prime was not a deal-breaker for the Russian MMA icon. However, when his father Abdulmanap passed away in the Summer of 2020 from COVID-19 related issues, and his mother pushed for him to bring an end to his career, the dream of fighting the UFC legend was officially gone.
“After what happened with my father, then my conversation with my mother, after I fight with Justin Gaethje, all of this came and I understood I was never gonna fight with him.”
St-Pierre last fought in 2017, when he returned from four-year retirement to beat middleweight champion Michael Bisping and become the third UFC fighter to win championships in two divisions. He is widely considered the best welterweight in UFC history.
Is Nurmagomedov vs St-Pierre up there with Randy Couture vs Fedor Emelianenko as the greatest fight that should have happened but never did?
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