Georges St-Pierre is still a target for UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Nurmagomedov battles Justin Gaethje in a lightweight title unification fight at UFC 254 on Saturday. Should he come out on top, “The Eagle” has made it no secret who he wants to face next.
Back in July, he called for a fight with St-Pierre to take place in April 2021. And with just a few days to go for UFC 254, the former welterweight king remains a dream fight for Nurmagomedov.
“I really become excited when I think about Georges St-Pierre,” Nurmagomedov said on ESPN’s First Take (via Bleacher Report). “I don’t know if he wants to fight with me or not, can he make weight—155 or not—but this fight makes me excited, honestly.
“And I think me vs. Georges is going to be very, very big fight. Like big fight for fans, big fight for pay-per-view, big fight for analytics, for everybody. This is only fight in UFC, after Gaethje, that makes me very excited.”
There’s no doubt that a St-Pierre vs. Nurmagomedov fight would be one of the biggest fights in mixed martial arts history, if not the biggest.
However, many obstacles remain. St-Pierre is retired and notably turns 40 next year. And even if both him and the UFC signed off on a fight, he has made it clear that he does not want to compromise himself and fight at 155 pounds — something he has never done before.
And of course, the UFC remains the biggest obstacle as St-Pierre has repeatedly speculated that the reason the promotion are against the fight is to protect their investment in Nurmagomedov.
Then again, if Nurmagomedov wants his last fight in MMA to be against St-Pierre, UFC president Dana White previously claimed he would be willing to make it happen.
For now, Nurmagomedov must focus on getting past Gaethje.
Do you think we’ll see this fight? Or should everyone move on?