UFC President, Dana White has said that he thinks Khabib will return to get the 30-0 record but Khabib has decided that he is retired completely. Dana White has said in the past that when a fighter decides to retire, he tries not to persuade them of getting back. The only fighters that may been exempted from the rules were Daniel Cormier and Khabib.
The decision for retirement was partly due to his father passing away due to complicated heart conditions and COVID. Fans are asking why is Khabib still the champion if he is retired or when is the next lightweight title fight.
Will Mcgregor vs Poirier the next step for the title shot and why is Khabib not yet stripped of his title. When Henry Cejudo decided to retire he was immediately removed from the rankings and Petr Yan vs Jose Aldo was scheduled for the title.
Khabib dominated every lightweight easily and has no challenge that he seeks anymore. Although he has said that the price that can make him think of getting back to the octagon would be $100M which may be too much for the UFC to pay one fighter.
Even Conor Mcgregor who is the biggest name in UFC cannot make that much money in one fight. It may be also that Khabib wants to give an impossible price in order to let him be at peace in his retirement. Mcgregor may have made around $100M when he fought Mayweather in a boxing match but the UFC also had a cut in Mcgregor’s pay.
The only opponent that Khabib is interested in is possibly GSP for a super fight where two GOAT contenders collide but GSP may be past his prime and won’t fight at 155lbs.
The most logical fight fantasy that hardcore fans want would be against Tony Ferguson. The fight has been rebooked many times but always fails to happen. It is one of the biggest what could have been fights in UFC history.
The other chance for Khabib to return would be if his Mother would grant him permission to fight again. The main reason for Khabib’s retirement is because he promised his mother that the fight against Justin Gaethje will be his last fight. He wanted to spend more time with his family and family is his number 1 priority.
Khabib also recently bought an MMA promotion back in Russia where he might elevate Russian MMA. There were also talks that he wants to put the MMA in the Olympics since it is a big sport but still young.
Khabib’s father is one of the biggest names in Dagestan MMA. He basically created the vision of bringing Russian fighters to the fight game. With Khabib the biggest name in Russia, He is planning to continue his father’s legacy and elevate the sport even more.
