Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen share differing takes on why Khabib Nurmagomedov may have retired "way too soon"
Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen expressed their thoughts on Khabib Nurmagomedov's early retirement. Sonnen asserted that the Dagestani fighter could have returned to the octagon in a different weight class, while Cormier reiterated Nurmagomedov's justification for calling off his professional MMA career.
Nurmagomedov (29-0) solidified his legacy by remaining unbeaten. His career, like that of many Dagestani fighters, was significantly influenced by his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. However, the renowned coach unfortunately passed away in July 2020 from COVID-19-related complications.
Following his father's demise, Nurmagomedov made his octagon return in a title unification bout against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 and secured a second-round submission win. Notably, he fulfilled his mother's wish and announced his retirement from the sport in his post-fight interview with Jon Anik.
In a recent sitdown with Bleacher Report, Cormier and Sonnen discussed whether Nurmagomedov's retirement was premature. It was indeed, according to the former two-division champion, who said:
''Way too soon. I thought Khabib could have been fighting today and there's a chance, I mean Islam is a bit of an extension of who he was. But to know them is to know that when his dad passed, it took a lot away from him. And so when he decided, I'm going to do something different, mom's like, 'hey, you and your father started this journey together. I don't want you to do it without him'. If he made that promise, I knew it was over.''
However, Sonnen claimed that the promotion should have persuaded Nurmagomedov to return as a welterweight rather than handing blank checks, saying:
''And I will tell you this, when the UFC started to negotiate with Khabib, they started adding zeros and commas and bigger checks and bigger checks and Conor Part 2. The UFC missed it. That wasn't the number they needed to change. The number they needed to change was a 155 pound weight class to 170 pound weight class...He didn't want to beat the scale anymore. And that's the one thing that the company did miss.''
Check out Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen's comments below:
Khabib Nurmagomedov pays respect to his father
Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov was instrumental in shaping the careers of Khabib Nurmagomedov and several other Dagestani fighters. However, his sudden passing in 2020 forced 'The Eagle' to hang up his gloves.
Nurmagomedov recently took to Instagram to share a ten-year-old photo of himself with his father, writing:
''My Father, my friend and my coach. He was everything for us Alhamdulillah. Photo was taken 10 years ago''