Khabib Nurmagomedov may be insisting that he has retired from the octagon but his manager Ali Abdelaziz said there's still one way Dana White can get him back into the octagon – give him a matchup against his dream opponent.
Nurmagomedov has gone on record on multiple occasions stating that his dream matchup would see him face former two-division UFC champion Georges St-Pierre.
But with the Canadian ace retired, and the UFC seemingly not keen on making the matchup, the bout remained nothing more than a pipe-dream during Khabib's fighting career.
Also on rt.com WATCH: Khabib suggests UFC could attempt to engineer encounter with Conor McGregor"The Eagle" announced his retirement from the octagon after his 29th career win, against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254, following an emotional year that saw him lose his coach and father, Abdulmanap, after complications arising from Covid-19.
UFC president White remains optimistic that he could persuade Khabib back to the cage, but so far Khabib has been steadfast in his insistence that he has retired.
But Khabib's manager, Ali Abdelaziz, told TMZ Sports that getting the Russian star back into the cage might be a tough task, even for the UFC boss.
"Khabib still trains every day. He spars, he grapples, he does everything. He trains probably more than a lot of professional fighters," he said.
"He's passionate about it, but at the end of the day, I have to respect him. I have to respect his wishes. He accomplished everything he needed to accomplish in the sport."
Abdelaziz wasn't convinced about White's recent comments saying he'd love to book Khabib in a rematch with Conor McGregor, should the Irishman defeat Dustin Poirier in their rematch at UFC 257 later this month.
Also on rt.com ‘In a perfect world, I'd love to see the rematch’: Dana White wants Khabib vs McGregor 2, IF Irishman wins at UFC 257"(Would) beating Conor McGregor mean anything? I don't know," he admitted.
"But I think it would mean a lot for the fans and I think financially, it's a huge fight. But, we know Khabib. It’s hard to persuade him financially.
"But my man Dana White and Khabib, they're gonna meet. I think they're gonna meet in Abu Dhabi and after that, Khabib's gonna come to Vegas and they're going to go to dinner in Vegas, and we're going to figure it out.
"Like I said, this is big boys' business, I'm gonna let them do what they do, and I'll be a fan."
Abdelaziz did reveal there was one fight that could potentially tempt his client back into the cage, and that's a fight with Canadian ace St-Pierre, who has himself expressed an interest in facing Khabib in the past.
"Honestly, I think if Georges St-Pierre is serious about coming back to fight, I could see it happening, that would get Khabib up," he said.
"But you know, he beat the sh*t out of Conor. He did everything he wanted to do. He beat him in the striking department, he beat him in the wrestling department, he beat him in the grappling department. He broke his soul, he took his will.
"We don't really care about him. Somebody might say one hundred million dollars or something like that, I don't think would persuade Khabib if Khabib did want to fight. I really don't know. I really didn't pressure Khabib or ask him about it too much. I let him be."