Islam Makhachev has said that his mother wants to organise a meeting with Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Back in May, Nurmagomedov pushed back against Dana White’s explanation for why he left the sport in 2020, despite still being at the top of his game at the time.
Even though there are still calls for him to return, Nurmagomedov made a promise to his mother after his father and coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, passed away – that he’d step away from fighting after one final bout.
Nobody took it more personally than Jon Jones. The two-time light heavyweight champion responded by reminding Rogan that he was once caught using “animal-grade testosterone.”
Khabib Nurmagomedov is a key topic in Islam Makhachev’s retirement talk
Islam Makhachev has no intention of retiring anytime soon, not after recently claiming the welterweight belt back in November.
His mother, though, has wanted him to walk away from fighting since before he even switched from combat sambo to MMA.
“My mom talks about me quitting since then, and lately she tells me, ‘Look, Khabib listened to his mom, but you don’t.’ She wasn’t putting me into a position of a choice but lately she tells me, ‘I need to see Khabib, we need to have a talk,’” he said during a recent appearance on LaRibaShow with Murad LaRiba.
Makhachev hasn’t organised that meeting yet but suspects it won’t be a casual chat if it happens. He also noted that while his mother hasn’t directly told him to retire, he’d respect her wishes if she did. “If mom would insist on it and give me no choice,” he responded when being asked if he’d step away if asked.
Nurmagomedov was just 32 when he retired and reportedly has an idea of the right age for fighters to call time on their careers. He told LaRiba last year: “When you get older – at 35-36 years old – your body already goes downhill. I think Islam has two more years left at most.”
Makhachev will turn 35 later this year and is currently waiting for his first title defence as welterweight champion to be announced.
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