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It’s the end of an era in the UFC lightweight division. Khabib Nurmagomedov is officially retired.
The 155-pound champion had previously announced his retirement from mixed martial arts, but there was some hope that he would ultimately return to the cage.
However, late Thursday night, UFC president Dana White confirmed Nurmagomedov is officially retired despite his best efforts to get “The Eagle” to return for another title defense.
29-0 it is.
He is 💯 officially retired. It was incredible to watch you work @TeamKhabib thank you for EVERYTHING and enjoy whatever is next my friend. pic.twitter.com/QeoSP12zw2
— danawhite (@danawhite) March 19, 2021
In his final UFC performance, Nurmagomedov earned a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his dominant second-round, technical submission victory over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.
With the win, Khabib advanced to 29-0 in his professional career. His 29 consecutive wins is the longest winning streak in all of mixed martial arts. Khabib first won the vacant lightweight championship on April 7, 2018, at UFC 223 when he scored a dominant decision win over Al Iaquinta in Brooklyn, New York.
Nurmagomedov became the first Russian to win a UFC title.
The submission victory over Gaethje was his third title defense. Previously, Nurmagomedov choked out Poirier in his second title defense. Nurmagomedov’s first title defense was a submission victory over Conor McGregor in October 2018.
