A recent report online claimed that Shara Magomedov, after his loss to Michael ‘Venom’ Page last week, had been advised to retire by doctors based in the UAE. Some even claimed that the exciting one-eyed striking maestro may be hanging his gloves for good. But thankfully, Magomedov’s coach, Gor Azizyan has rubbished these claims.

“It doesn’t have anything to do with reality… Shara is in Mecca. He went on Umrah then he will come back to Russia and get some medical treatment,” the coach said in a recent interview with ‘Metammaplus’. In addition, Azizyan revealed that far from thinking about retiring, Magomedov is already fielding offers from the Dana White-led promotion for his next fight.

“Shara belongs to that caliber of fighters who can get a fight whenever he wants. [UFC matchmaker] Mick [Maynard] has already got in touch and offered his fights,” he added.

In addition, the coach also confirmed (or at least didn’t deny) Magomedov’s claim that he lost to Page in their UFC Saudi Arabia clash because of serious health issues, namely an intestinal infection. “We got defeated and we accept it… his health let him down and that’s it. It happens… I don’t want to go into details, he just didn’t want to disappoint his fans. That’s why he still fought,” the coach revealed.

Of course, this was the first loss of Magomed’s career. It has halted the amazing momentum the Dagestani had been on since joining the promotion less than two years ago. But the one-eyed warrior remains a fan-favorite and very much a hot commodity in the sport. But how far can he go with just one eye? Well, far enough.

Can Shara Magomedov ever become champion?

By virtue of having one eye, Shara Magomedov is most probably not eligible to fight in the United States. After all, almost all Athletic Commissions aren’t going to clear a one-eyed fighter, which is why ‘Shara Bullet’ has mostly fought in the Middle East so far. Michael Bisping, as fans would remember, had to lie to the commissions in order to get cleared to fight after going blind in one eye.

But since Magomedov cannot do that, he is unlikely to ever fight in the States at all. But that doesn’t mean he cannot have a long and fulfilling career, or cannot become champion. It would be undoubtedly hard, but if he keeps winning and being popular among fans, there is no reason he couldn’t win the title.

‘Shara Bullet’ was already in the Top 15 at 185lbs before his loss. And while the loss against Page may be a setback, he could well get a top-ten-ranked opponent after one more win. Not to mention he is incredibly popular among fans, which also helps his case. However, what is more worrying for Magomedov fans is that he clearly wasn’t up to the task of beating ‘MVP’- the first real high-level guy he has faced.

Some are even calling his loss to Page a ‘fraud check’, which cannot be ruled out. Amid all of these questions, Magomedov’s next fight is a crucial fork in the road of his career. It may well tell us if the Dagestani is good enough for the championship level. What do you think about Shara Magomedov’s coach’s clarification about his rumored retirement?