Khabib Nurmagomedov called it quits on his MMA career a little over three years ago at UFC 254. ‘The Eagle’ broke down in the middle of the octagon while conveying his decision to leave the sport as he lost his father. To add to that, ‘The Eagle’ stated that his mother did not want him to compete anymore now that his father had passed away. All these factors ultimately ended up in Nurmagomedov stepping away from the sport.
‘The Eagle’ was born into Sambo. From a very early age, his father Abdulmanap started training him to be an elite Sambo fighter. Nurmagomedov’s father was extremely tough on him and his cousins and wanted nothing but his pupils to be elite fighters. Despite being a Sambo practitioner from a very early age, football was the sport that ‘The Eagle’ loved as much as sambo.
Being a professional footballer was a dream that the Dagestani fighter had ever since he was a kid. After his retirement, he was offered a contract by a Russian club as well. However, in a throwback interview with MatchTV, ‘The Eagle’ revealed that had discussions with the biggest names in football about potentially playing. He said,
“To play football on a professional level is a childhood dream. Of course, I have such a wish. Football is the king of sports after all. Who haven’t I discussed this with! I’ve spoken even with the UEFA president Aleskandr Ceferin, with the owner of PSG, yes and even with Cristiano Ronaldo.”
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Despite the talks, Nurmagomedov never signed with a football team. However, he did reject a few big offers to return to fighting. Let’s tale a closer look at what Nurmagomedov walked away from.
Khabib Nurmagomedov walks away from $40 million
There is no doubt that the Dagestani born fighter retired from the sport way too early. He stepped away from the sport at the height of his powers while dominating the most elite 155-pound fighters in the world. Therefore, it was only natural for Dana White and other promoters as well to try and lure him back into the sport. Unfortunately, none have been successful so far to get him back.
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In a recent interview, ‘The Eagle’ shared that it was not easy to remain retired. Especially since promoters were tempting him with obscene amounts of money. In the interview he said that it was not easy to walk away from ‘$20, $30, $40 million’. Needless to say, at this point in time, there is no amount of money that could get Nurmagomedov back into the octagon.
