The current lie of the UFC lightweight land seems somewhat murky at the moment.
Undisputed promotional champion, Khabib ‘The Eagle’ Nurmagomedov remains the unrivalled titleholder at 155-pounds, despite announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts with immediate effect following UFC 254 in October.
Khabib, who unified the lightweight titles in Abu Dhabi, UAE opposite then-interim titleholder, Justin ‘The Highlight’ Gaethje elected to announce his decision to walk away from the sport with a perfect 29-0 record, following a promise he made to his mother after the passing of his father and renowned sambo coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov earlier this year due to complications after he had contracted COVID-19 in his native Dagestan.
Despite reiterating his intentions to continue his academic studies and tend to his personal farm, Khabib has been continously linked with a return to the Octagon, with the promotion failing to remove him from the official rankings. It’s also worth noting, Khabib recently participated in an anti-doping test carried out by USADA, as he remains in the anti-doping agency’s testing-pool.
In the weeks following Khabib’s somewhat surprising retirement, UFC president, Dana White had explained how he believes the undefeated grappler will snap his retirement from the sport, in an attempt to score a 30-0 professional résumé.
Taking to his official Instagram account tonight, Khabib alluded to an upcoming sitdown with promotional head-honcho, White, penning “see you soon @danawhite“.
Following UFC 255 this weekend in Las Vegas at the UFC Apex, White himself reiterated his point that he’s planning on meeting with Khabib in the not too distant future to discuss his plans regarding a possible retirement snapping.
Briefly floated as a potential spot for a vacant or even interim title fight to land; UFC 257 on January 23 is slated to feature a headlining rematch between former gold holders and foes of Khabib, Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier and ‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor.
Officially announced by the promotion yesterday afternoon, Poirier vs. McGregor II is currently billed as a five-round main event, without any title spoils, interim or vacant, up for grabs for the victor.