“My son is starting to ask me a lot of questions because when I retired, he was only three years old and he didn’t understand anything,” the Russian told a fan meeting in Toronto. “A couple weeks ago he asked me, ‘Dad, can you fight like Islam Makhachev? ‘ I was like, ‘why do you ask?’ and he said, ‘because I’ve never seen you fight like him'”
“He was just a little kid when I left, but now he’s starting to ask me everything, and so far I don’t know what to do. I personally don’t want him to become a professional athlete, but if he chooses that path, what can we do? I would want him to be a normal person because professional athletes are not normal people. I’ve lived this life and I know what I’m talking about.”
In October 2020, Khabib Nurmagomedov successfully unified the interim and current UFC lightweight titles by finishing Justin Gaethje with a second-round triangle choke before announcing the end of his professional career. The undefeated Russian fighter retired with a 29-0 record with thirteen victories under the banner of the world’s strongest league.