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Khabib is seeking $50 million for his next fight, according to his manager

Liz Roscher
·Staff writer
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s manager is looking for a $50 million payday for Khabib’s next fight. (VASILY MAXIMOV/AFP/Getty Images)
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s manager is looking for a $50 million payday for Khabib’s next fight. (VASILY MAXIMOV/AFP/Getty Images)

Khabib Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has his eye on the prize. After his fighter took down Conor McGregor at UFC 229, he knows what Khabib is worth. In a video from TMZ Sports, Abdelaziz talked about how much he wants for Khabib’s next fight, and shared his thoughts on plenty of other things, too.

Abdelaziz wants $50 million for Khabib’s next fight

In a video that appears to have been recorded from the inside of a car, Abdelaziz mused about who Khabib should fight next. He doesn’t seem to think there are any worthy competitors for Khabib in the Octagon, but he’s more worried about the kind of money their names will bring to the fight.

“Ben Askren, Woodley, none of these guys can touch Khabib. Especially if they’re scared to get tired and these guys, they get tired. Now, I’m not even worried about Tyron or Ben Askren, I’m worrying about somebody bringing $50 million to $100 million to the table and none of these guys can bring $200,000 to the table.”

Fifty million is an ambitious price tag, but it’s not unattainable. MMAFighting.com says McGregor got around $50 million from his share of the pay-per-view revenue from UFC 229. Khabib also got a share of the revenue, but it was likely less. Since Khabib defeated McGregor, Abdelaziz wants McGregor money for his client’s next fight.

“Listen, the guy we just fought said he made $50 million. I think, as a global superstar, Khabib bypass him. You have a guy meeting with Putin and Erdoğan and the other guy selling liquor on the corner store. It’s not even in the f—ing same planet.”

Will Khabib fight Tony Ferguson?

Abdelaziz’s seeming insistence on getting a massive payout for Khabib’s next fight restricts who he could face. As Dana White said on Tuesday, Tony Ferguson makes the most sense as Khabib’s next opponent. Ferguson is the former interim lightweight champion, and he was part of UFC 229. But if Khabib and Abdelaziz are chasing a superfight, Ferguson isn’t it.

Plus, Abdelaziz doesn’t think too highly of Ferguson as an opponent for Khabib, which he made clear when the two briefly sparred on Twitter earlier this week.

There could be a rematch with Conor McGregor

If Khabib and Abdelaziz want a superfight, a rematch with Conor McGregor is the way to go. UFC 229 was wildly successful, and included a triumphant Khabib leaping out of the Octagon to attack McGregor’s team. A good rematch needs drama, and that one would have it.

It’s far from certain that Khabib and McGregor will meet again in the Octagon, but if they do, Abdelaziz knows what he wants to see from the fight.

“I really want to see [Conor] drink his own blood. […] He talked a lot of s–t. He didn’t back it up. Embarrassed himself in front of his whole beautiful country of Ireland, his father, his mother, his wife.”

Well OK then! That’s, uh, pretty severe. McGregor called Abdelaziz a terrorist in the lead-up to UFC 229, which may have a little something to do with the intensity of Abdelaziz’s comments.

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Liz Roscher is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter at @lizroscher.

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