Following a 29th career win at UFC 254, Khabib Nurmagomedov ended his career undefeated, which cemented his status as one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time.But you know what’s better than 29-0? 30-0.Khabib could be set to fight for a 30th career win, as his manager, Abdelaziz, posted a tweet on Monday that seemingly teased the Eagle’s return to MMA.In his post-fight interview at UFC 254, an emotional Khabib claimed that he made a promise to his mother that he would not fight without his father by his side.Despite this, recent history shows that MMA retirements are usually short-lived, as been by the likes of Conor McGregor, Jason Miller and Tito Ortiz, who all returned to the octagon after supposedly ‘retiring’.With a historic 30th consecutive career win on the cards for Khabib, the rumours continue to circulate that an early comeback is imminent.
When speaking to RT.com, Khabib said that UFC chief, Dana White, wants the Russian to continue fighting.
Khabib’s trainer, Javier Mendez, also hinted at the Russian coming out of retirement very soon.
In an interview with SunSport, he said: “Look at his emotions, he was in tears, he was all over the place.
“I had no idea, he never said anything to me, so I was just like everyone else.
“But hey, you know what, I understood the father burden was too much.
“You saw how much he let out, and I went up to him and told him, ‘I love you, cry and just let it out’.
“Khabib, he was extremely emotional and what he does with that, I don’t know.
“I know he said what he said, but he was extremely emotional and time will tell if it will stick or not.
“Honestly, I don’t know and I’m not going to talk to him about it either, it’s not my job.
“My job is to love him and coach him when he wants to fight.”
With McGregor returning to the ring in January to take on Dustin Poirier, the stage could be set for a highly-anticipated rematch between Khabib and the Irishman if McGregor wins.
Georges St-Pierre, arguably the greatest MMA fighter of all time, could also be a worthy opponent for Khabib, should the Canadian decide to come out of retirement.
What we know for sure though is that if Khabib comes out of retirement to challenge for his 30th consecutive career win, the fight will be one of epic proportions.