Ali Abdelaziz: $100M Wouldn’t Persuade Khabib To Rematch McGregor
Ali Abdelaziz who manages Khabib Nurmagomedov has played down a potential rematch between ‘The Eagle’ and Conor McGregor.
Nurmagomedov beat Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in October before announcing his retirement from the sport. Despite doubling down on his retirement claims Khabib’s future in the sport remains unclear, with UFC boss Dana White set to try to convince Nurmagomedov to fight on when the pair meet in Abu Dhabi prior to UFC 257. White recently went on record saying he is hopeful of making a rematch between Nurmagomedov and McGregor if the Irishman beats Dustin Poirier on January 23.
In an interview with TMZ Sports, Abdelaziz was less optimistic about the potential match-up.
“(Would) beating Conor McGregor mean anything? I don’t know,” Abdelaziz said. “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 going to meet,” Abdelaziz added. “I think they’re going to meet in Abu Dhabi, and after that, Khabib’s going to 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 going to let them do what they do, and I’ll be a fan.”
Nurmagomedov beat McGregor by fourth round submission at UFC 229. The win was pretty comprehensive and for that reason Abdelaziz says Khabib has no real motivation to run things back.
“He beat the (expletive) out of Conor,” Abdelaziz said. “He did everything he wanted to do. He beat him in the striking department, he beat him 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 $100 million or something like that. I don’t think would persuade Khabib if Khabib didn’t’t 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.” (Transcribed by MMA Junkie)
Do you agree with Ali Abdelaziz? Is a rematch between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor unlikely?
