When Khabib Nurmagomedov turned down this offer, Daniel Cormier knew he was never coming back.
Nurmagomedov called time on his career in 2020, fulfilling a promise he made to his mother following the passing of his father, coach Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov.
Following the main event of UFC 254, in which Nurmagomedov submitted Justin Gaethje, ‘The Eagle’ laid down his gloves and officially announced his retirement. In spite of the promotion’s best attempts, the Dagestani has remained committed to that decision.
Dana White often says Nurmagomedov retired too soon, and he did not give in easy when it came to accepting the decision. One rejected offer, though, seemingly spelled the end of all hope regarding a comeback.
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Daniel Cormier knew Khabib Nurmagomedov was done when he turned down $40 million to return
Daniel Cormier spent years training alongside Nurmagomedov at the American Kickboxing Academy and knows the legendary former lightweight king better than most.
With that in mind, Cormier’s insistence that his longtime teammate won’t return is a strong indication that a comeback is fully off the cards. But ‘DC’ was not always among those completely shutting the door.
During a recent episode of his Good Guy/Bad Guy show on ESPN MMA’s YouTube channel, Cormier revealed the moment when he finally realized that ‘The Eagle’ was retired for good.
“That is so far from ever happening, Khabib fighting again,” Cormier said.
“The moment Khabib sat on the top-25 UFC fighters of all time and told us that they had offered him $40 million and he said no, I said, ‘This dude is never fighting.’
“Calling him out is like calling out the Pope…he’s not gonna fight.”
Cormier first mentioned that lucrative offer during a YouTube video in 2024.
“Khabib told us he turned down $40 million. He said $40 million, the dude said $40 million. To come back, to fight in the UFC.
“I don’t know how many fights he was meaning, I don’t know what event. He just said, ‘I turned away $40 million brother, I’m done.’”
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Khabib Nurmagomedov still gets comeback offers — but not for MMA
Although the former UFC champion has been firm in rejecting comeback talk, that evidently has not stopped him from getting sent offers even to this day.
Nurmagomedov revealed he still gets offered grappling matches, but whether it’s MMA or another sport, the Dagestani still has absolutely no interest in competing again in any form.
“They keep offering me grappling,” he said on the Hustle Show. “Yeah, grappling offers all the time.
“There wasn’t anyone. They had no opponents. They said, ‘If you agree, we’ll find an opponent for you.’
(I) never even thought about (accepting a comeback offer),” Nurmagomedov added.