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ABU DHABI – When UFC president Dana White and lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov met behind closed doors on Friday, a handful of potential names were discussed to potentially come out of retirement. Former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre was not one of them.
UFC lightweight contenders Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, Dan Hooker and Charles Oliveira were among the possible opponents for Nurmagomedov (29-0 MMA, 13-0 UFC) if he returned. However, Saint-Pierre (26-2 MMA, 20-2 UFC) was not lifted as this ship has sailed because none of the hunters are interested.
“No,” White told the UFC on Saturday at the ABC 1 press conference after the fight. “The GSP never appeared. (Nurmagomedov) is not interested in this fight. From what I hear today, after that, neither does SPG. So, it’s over.
Nurmagomedov and St-Pierre had expressed interest in fighting in the past. Ahead of his record-breaking 29-0 win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 last October, Nurmagomedov called St-Pierre the perfect opponent for his 30th fight.
After Nurmagomedov retired, St-Pierre deflected the question of whether or not he would have accepted the fight if he had been offered and whether Nurmagomedov had not announced his retirement from the cage.
As for the sequel for Nurmagomedov, White revealed during the UFC broadcast on ABC 1 that the champion will make a final decision after UFC 257 on January 23. He wants to see if any performances jump on him and make him want to come back for No.30.
Nurmagomedov will fly to Las Vegas next week. After the conclusion of UFC 257, White will follow suit. The two are expected to have dinner and discuss Nurmagomedov’s final decision over dinner soon after. This time, White expects him to finally get his yes or no answer.
“He takes the turns on Wednesday and then he goes,” White said. “He leaves and goes to Vegas. I’m going to fight and come home on Sunday, and I’ll see him in Vegas again. These fights will have taken place. He and I are going to log on and have dinner in Vegas and talk again. We will make a decision. The only thing he said was, ‘I’m not going to delay the division.’ “
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