UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov is more of a superstar than you think. Hailing from Dagestan, “The Eagle” is a big deal in the middle east. So much in fact that manager Ali Abdelaziz has claimed that Khabib is being offered an insane $100 million to rematch Conor McGregor or take on retired Floyd Mayweather.
”I know some people in Saudi Arabia, right now, they met with me, they want to pay $100 million to Khabib to fight Conor in Saudi Arabia,” Abdelaziz claimed. “They want to pay Khabib $100 million to fight Floyd [Mayweather] in Saudi Arabia.”
TMZ
The numbers do sound to be superlative and it may just be that. However it does not negate the fact that Khabib made a massive impression with his title defense victory over Dustin Poirier in Abu Dhabi last year. The Saudi’s no doubt want their Muslim Mauler back for an ecore demolishment. The news of Saudi Arabia looking to bring big combat sports match-ups is nothing new. In fact, it has been reported that Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn was paid $40 million to host Anthony Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. in Diriyah.
The likelihood of the fighting happening?
Slim to nil. The UFC contracts are ironclad, especially for champions. Khabib would need to get the UFC’s green light, and as we know, the promotion likes to host their biggest events in their backyard of Las Vegas, NV. The champ will also need to get past Tony Ferguson in April. Should all the stars align with the athletes in question, and the UFC somehow decides to start working with the Saudi’s over their partners in Abu Dhabi, then maybe we can see some negotiations start. Until then, the UFC will likely be keeping to business as usual with the winner of Khabib vs. Tony fighting Conor McGregor.