UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov is at odds with Dana White over the UFC head’s recent claims about his abrupt retirement.
Khabib Nurmagomedov became one of the few MMA greats to retire on top of the sport when he announced the end of his career following a win at UFC 254. After the tragic death of his father just months before defeating Justin Gaethje, Nurmagomedov fulfilled a promise to his mother never to fight again.
Despite several lucrative offers from the UFC for Nurmagomedov to return, the UFC Hall of Famer has remained steadfast in his retirement. He entered the UFC Hall of Fame in 2022 alongside longtime teammate and friend Daniel Cormier.
But questions continue to be raised regarding Nurmagomedov’s abrupt retirement in the middle of his fighting prime. UFC CEO Dana White raised eyebrows recently when he claimed in an interview that Nurmagomedov’s retirement was due to making a large sum of money on a ‘Muslim world tour’ following his victory over Conor McGregor.
Khabib Nurmagomedov calls out Dana White’s ‘lies’ about UFC retirement
In a recent Instagram story post, Nurmagomedov responded to White’s recent comments.
💰Dana White says Khabib stopped fighting because he made so much money on Muslim world tour
“He hit Saudi, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and they rained money on him. He made so much money that he didn’t have to fight anymore”
via Prince St Pizza pic.twitter.com/cfc3RIAvhG
— Dovy🔌 (@DovySimuMMA) May 20, 2026
“These are the kinds of headlines I sometimes read online. Of course, I’m not someone who likes to comment on every piece of garbage on the internet, but when Dana says things like this, it spreads everywhere,” Nurmagomedov said of White’s remarks.
“I’ll say this: I swear by Allah, this is an absolute lie. Nobody ever gave me those millions, and what they’re writing, that I left the sport because I made a lot of money, is also not true. The whole world knows the real truth.
“I’ve already spoken about this more than once, and there’s no need to repeat it.”
As of this writing, White hasn’t responded to Nurmagomedov’s fiery statement.
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