Ex-UFC King Khabib Nurmagomedov Urged to Fight Colby Covington

Getty Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates his submission victory over Dustin Poirier Dustin at UFC 242 in September 2019.

Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has been urged by Brendan Schaub to come out of retirement and fight Colby Covington.

Schaub spoke about “The Eagle” on his newest episode of “The Schaub Show” podcast. His comments about Nurmagomedov stem from a social media post The Eagle made in reaction to the altercation between Covington and Jorge Masvidal.

Covington has accused his rival of punching him in the face twice, fracturing his tooth, causing a wrist abrasion and damaging his Rolex watch. Masvidal was arrested and charged with aggravated battery with a mask causing great bodily harm and criminal mischief, two felonies.

The bad blood between Masvidal and Covington reached new levels during the build-up to their fight at UFC 272 on March 5. And specifically, “Chaos” repeatedly took aim at Masvidal’s ex-wife and children.

To Nurmagomedov, Covington should have been ready to “back up” his “words,” questioning why Chaos decided to press charges.

“If you are stronger than someone inside the octagon, it does not mean that you can insult his children. No one has the right to insult someone’s family,” Nurmagomedov wrote. “Once you have gone down this path, then be ready to back up your words. You were attacked by a professional fighter, the same as you are, your own side, and you go press charges against him to the police?”

Nurmagomedov then called for 170 pounders to boycott Covington by not accepting a fight with him.

“I think all welterweights should refuse to fight Colby, just don’t accept fights with him,” The Eagle continued. “Let him sit without a fight. It will probably significantly affect him and all fighters who even think of insulting families, who is provoking fighters to look for someone in restaurants to deal with him.”

Schaub Says Nurmagomedov Is Trying to Keep Himself ‘Relevant,’ Tells The Eagle to Fight Chaos

Schaub, a former UFC heavyweight turned combat sports analyst, believes The Eagle is trying to make headlines with his strong stance against Covington.

“Always trying to make the headlines with hot takes, right?” Schaub said via The Mirror. “And I love Khabib but that ain’t a hill to die on. ‘Boycott fighting him.’ I have an idea, Khabib, why don’t you get out of retirement and beat Colby. Why don’t you do it the legal way?

“Khabib, he’s keeping himself relevant, he has his fight league and stuff like that. He said, ‘If Conor beats Makhachev, I’ll come out of retirement.’ All good! Keep the same energy here, though. If you don’t like Colby so much, come out of retirement and fight him.”

Nurmagomedov retired from mixed martial arts in October 2020 after he submitted Justin Gaethje in his third consecutive 155-pound title defense. The Eagle has a professional record of 29-0, boasting wins over the likes of Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor.

Schaub Retired From Fighting After His Loss in 2014

The last time Schaub competed as a mixed martial artist was in 2014 when he was finished by Travis Browne via TKO at UFC 181. He retired with a professional record of 10-5, which includes seven wins by KO/TKO and one by submission.

Schaub holds wins over the likes of Mirko Cro Cop, Matt Mitrione and Gabriel Gonzaga.