Prior to UFC 209, lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov looked to be on the verge of fighting Conor McGregor for the lightweight strap. But following a failed weight cut that led to the cancellation of his interim title fight against Tony Ferguson, real questions not only about Nurmagomedov’s future title hopes, but about his future in the sport have surfaced.
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s father first brought the prospect of his son’s retirement to the fore, curiously, before the unfortunate developments of UFC 209. As reported by MMA Mania, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov told Life.ru that his 28-year-old son “has to finish his career” by 30 years old, leaving the Dagestan native just 1.5 years to compete if they were to stick to that timeline. And while there have been contradicting reports about a possible rebooking of his fight against Tony Ferguson, there are rumors that Nurmagomedov may be having weight management issues due to a rare medical condition known as Budd-Chiari syndrome.
Budd-Chiari syndrome is a condition caused by occlusion of hepatic veins that drain the liver. The formation of a blood clot within the hepatic veins can lead to Budd-Chiari syndrome. While there have been no official word about the rumor, Khabib Nurmagomedov’s head coach Javier Mendez, also touched on the prospect of the fighter’s potential retirement. “Being that his father, like I said, is a huge influence on him – and if that’s what him and his father decide to do, then that’s what will happen,” Mendez told Submission Radio about Khabib Nurmagomedov’s future. “
But even if Khabib Nurmagomedov sorts out his health and weight management issues, UFC fighters have begun to express reservations about fighting the sambo fighter. As noted by Bleacher Report, Tony Ferguson and Eddie Alvarez have both said that Nurmagomedov’s propensity for pulling out of fights have made them hesitant about signing on to fight the undefeated fighter. Ariel Helwani also reported that the UFC tried and failed to rebook the Nurmagomedov-Ferguson fight for UFC 210.
Still only 4 fights listed on the UFC 210 PPV graphic. UFC did try to book Ferguson-Khabib & Ferguson-Alvarez for it this week but no luck.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 12, 2017
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