Khabib Nurmagomedov retired from competing inside the octagon at UFC 254 in 2020. Despite this, ‘The Eagle’ never stopped training. However, he doesn’t have to go through the grueling weight cuts anymore. Thus, Nurmagomedov is looking heavier than before. Now, Islam Makhachev suggested that if ‘The Eagle’ ever decides to come back, he might return as a welterweight.

After his impressive win at UFC Vegas 49, the Dagestan-born fighter was doing the obligated media, where Kamaru Usman, the welterweight champion, was working on the desk.

Makhachev and Usman had a fun exchange when Usman asked how does Makhachev fare against Nurmagomedov. Usman emphasized that since ‘The Eagle’ has retired and is looking visibly heavy, is Makhachev able to compete with him in the training sessions. Makhachev agreed with ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ and said that Nurmagomedov has become too heavy for him to train.

Not only that, he made a cheeky remark towards Usman and said, “Maybe, he gonna come back, brother, and he not gonna be 155, he fights 170 for sure.” 

“Oh, he fights light heavyweights, 205,” responded Usman. Also, Dillon Danis, who has a history with Nurmagomedov that dates back to UFC 229, on the same Instagram post, commented, “khabib weighs 250.”

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Makhachev, in the whole interview, looked in high spirit, after he puts on a decisive performance against Bobby Green in the main event of UFC Vegas 49.

Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov have similar paths

Rising lightweight contender, Makhachev, has now stacked 10 UFC wins in a row. Also, the only blemish in his MMA career is a loss against Adriano Martins in his second UFC fight. Since then, the Dagestani fighter has not let anything get in his way.

Similar to his coach and teammate, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Makhachev is getting a hard time finding the top opponents in the division. Though he has a 10-fight win streak, he hasn’t fought a single top-five lightweight inside the octagon.

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However, his originally scheduled bout, against Beneil Dariush, appeared as the bout which would propel him to the larger audience, as a title contender. However, fate had other plans.

In conclusion, has he looked phenomenal inside the octagon? Yes. But has he competed against the best lightweight fighters inside the octagon? Perhaps not. However, many MMA pundits acknowledge his performance against Dan Hooker.

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It would be interesting to see what the UFC does with him. Usually, around October, the UFC has an Abu Dhabi card and Makhachev wants to be on the card. Would the champion accept a match with Makhachev at a place where the crowd is probably against the champion? Only time will tell.

If Khabib Nurmagomedov comes back to the welterweight division, could he get the same success as he got in the UFC’s lightweight division? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.