UFC legend Chael Sonnen has claimed that the reason why Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre retired prematurely was because of brutal weight cuts.
Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s retirement from the UFC in 2020 after a dominant win over Justin Gaethje came as a huge shock considering he was still in the prime of his career.
Similarly when Georges St-Pierre first retired from the sport in 2013 following a win over Johnny Hendricks, fans were shocked as he was just 32 years old.
Both fighters are included in the greatest of all time conversation, especially GSP considering the records he holds in the UFC welterweight division.
Chael Sonnen claims brutal weight cuts resulted in Khabib’s and St-Pierre’s retirements
Several reasons have been put forward for the retirements of both fighters, with Nurmagomedov’s reasoning being that he made a promise to his mother that he wouldn’t fight without his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, in his corner, following his passing.
St-Pierre returned after a four-year retirement in 2017, destroying Michael Bisping to become the UFC middleweight champion but retired shortly after when he found out he had colitis.
However, despite both fighters’ respective reasons for retirement, UFC Hall of Famer, Chael Sonnen, believes the real reason is because of continuous brutal weight cuts.
“The only reason you didn’t get Khabib to 30-0 is because you wanted to do it at 155lbs, Khabib and everyone would’ve stuck around, Georges St-Pierre, right on down the list,” Sonnen claimed in a recent YouTube video.
“All the guys you’ve ever seen retire would’ve done one more if you would’ve let them go up in weight,” he continued.
Joe Rogan wants weight cutting removed from the UFC
Weight cutting continues to be a huge issue in not only the UFC but throughout MMA in general.
Fighters still use dangerous methods to get down in weight which sometimes causes health concerns and leaves fans wondering how close to 100% fighters are when they step into the cage.
UFC icon, Joe Rogan, has historically labeled weight cutting as ‘sanctioned cheating’ and has continuously suggested that the UFC adds in more weight classes to stop weight cutting.