Khabib Nurmagomedov has confirmed he will be in attendance to see Conor McGregor rematch Dustin Poirier on January 23.
Nurmagomedov retired from fighting in the aftermath of UFC 254. The undefeated Russian quickly choked out Justin Gaethje to improve his record to 29-0 before announcing he will be walking away from the sport. UFC president Dana White isn’t convinced Nurmagomedov is truly done and is hoping to coax him out of retirement when they meet on ‘Fight Island’ in January.
‘The Eagle’ says he is not worried about the prospect of bumping into McGregor while there. The pair haven’t crossed paths since infamously brawling in the aftermath of UFC 229. Speaking at a press conference to announce his new promotion Eagle Fighting Championship, Nurmagomedov insisted a run-in with McGregor is the last thing on his mind.
“Why should I think about that?” Khabib told the media in Moscow. “I’ll act based on the situation. If you don’t like someone or they don’t like you, it’s OK. If I meet someone I don’t like, I’ll act based on the situation.“
A reporter then asked Nurmagomedov if he thinks the UFC would try to engineer a meeting between the two rivals in order to drum up interest for a potential rematch.
“Now we’re having a serious conversation,” Khabib replied. “Maybe [they could]. They’re able to do that. Anything can happen. It could be Moscow, Abu Dhabi, New York… Believe me, they’re the best at that. No one compares to them [the UFC].”
Even if the two men do bump into each other Nurmagomedov doesn’t expect there to be any type of altercations, largely due to the fact McGregor has a big fight against ‘The Diamond’ to prepare for.
“Anything’s possible in life,” Khabib said. “People kill each other and then make up… I don’t think there will be any provocation [from him], he will need to think about his fight.” (Transcribed by RT Sport)
Do you think there could be trouble if Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor cross paths at UFC 257?