Dana White Explains Why Khabib Nurmagomedov Isn’t The GOAT

Dana White has weighed in on the MMA GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) debate.

The UFC president believes that Khabib Nurmagomedov’s premature retirement rules him out of the running but says ‘The Eagle’ could’ve gone down as the best ever if he continued to rack up wins.

During a recent episode of The Fight with Teddy Atlas, White was asked to pick the best MMA fighter ever and immediately began discussing the pioneers of the sport.

“It’s so hard,” White said. “Chuck Liddell and Ronda Rousey are two people who really helped build this business, you know, super loyal.

Dana White Says Khabib Nurmagomedov Could’ve Been The GOAT

White then moved on to more contemporary fighters such as Kamaru Usman and Khabib Nurmagomedov, two men he clearly holds in high regard.

“Right now, I think Kamaru Usman is the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world, what he’s accomplished in the past few years is amazing,” White said.

“I think Khabib Nurmagomedov probably could be called the greatest ever, who knows, if he’d stuck around longer. It was unfortunate, the passing of his father.”

After the passing of his father, Nurmagomedov retired from the sport and despite White’s efforts, the undefeated Russian appears to be completely done with competing in MMA. Nurmagomedov has since launched his own MMA promotion, Eagle FC, and appears to be enjoying life away from the UFC Octagon.

“He’s just gotten to a point in his life where you’ve got so much money it changes everything,” White added. “The fight business is a tough business to get up and go to every day when you’ve got that kind of money.” (Transcribed by Mirror Fighting)

Despite his early retirement, Nurmagomedov is still considered the best ever by a section of fight fans. The 33-year-old walked away with a perfect 29-0 record, having beat the likes of Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor, Justin Gaethje, Rafael dos Anjos, Edson Barboza and Al Iaquinta.

Do you agree with Dana White? Does Khabib Nurmagomedov’s premature retirement rule him out of the GOAT debate?