Khabib Nurmagomedov and his possible return to the UFC will dominate headlines this week. Dana White said that Khabib is waiting on the results of UFC 257 to see whether he returns to the Octagon after announcing his retirement in October.

However, Khabib has spoken to Russian media and has disputed what Dana has said, implying that he will not be returning. “This is what I have been doing all my life, and I will continue to train constantly as well.

“But if we talk about the fights, they are not part of my plans.”

He reiterated that his reason for retirement is the happiness of his mother. “My mother is the most precious thing I have left. Come on, you won’t push me to do things that will disappoint my mother.”

He added, “I don’t even have any plans for the UFC in the near future. I don’t even have thoughts about preparing for the fight. I saw how Umar (Nurmagomedov) was preparing now and I think: Alhamdulillah I have left it behind.”

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Khabib Nurmagomedov: Is the champion returning?

Khabib Nurmagomedov is still the UFC Lightweight Champion. Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier are not fighting for the title, but just a contender’s fight.

This means that the UFC is looking at this fight to see how they book the title, with Khabib possibly returning for a final fight.

The money is in having Khabib rematch Conor, so maybe Khabib does return if Conor beats Poirier. However, he is invoking his mothers’ name a lot to hammer home the point about his retirement.

He wouldn’t be doing so if it was a promotional gimmick as Khabib has shown how seriously he takes his family. Everyone wants Khabib back in the cage. He is in his prime and could clean out the most stacked LW division in UFC history.

However, if he is satisfied with his career and is aware of his booming opportunities outside the cage, he can walk away from the sport in a better physical condition than most do.