Khabib tells White to "send me location" after meeting with former UFC chief

Khabib Nurmagomedov has teased a return to the UFC, five months after announcing his retirement from mixed martial arts at UFC 254.

After successfully defending his lightweight title against Justin Gaethje, Nurmagomedov removed his gloves and laid them down in the centre of the octagon.

"Today I want to say this was my last fight," Nurmagomedov said. "No way I'm going to come here without my father. It was first time after what happened with my father, when UFC called me about Justin, I talk with my mother three days.

"She doesn't want me to go fight without my father but I promised her it was going to be my last fight. If I give my word, I have to follow this. It was my last fight here."

Despite his announcement, UFC president Dana White has repeatedly attempted to coax the 32-year-old out of retirement and Nurmagomedov now appears open to a return.

On social media, the 29-0 fighter shared an image of himself with former UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, captioning the picture: "It was good to see you Lorenzo. @danawhite send me location"

Nurmagomedov famously used the phrase "send me location" when he called out heated rival Conor McGregor in 2018.

The Eagle is still the UFC's lightweight champion, with White so far refusing to strip him of the title.

Speaking ahead of UFC 259, White explained that he was going to have another meeting with Nurmagomedov and that he was planning to let some fights "play out" in the lightweight division before deciding on the future of the title.

Number one ranked contender Dustin Poirier is expected to face Conor McGregor in a trilogy bout this year, while Justin Gaethje has been slated to fight Michael Chandler.

"We're going to have dinner on Saturday or Sunday and just talk and see," White said. "I think a lot of these fights have to play out in that division.

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    • "From [number nine] all the way up to number one, they're incredible fights. You can mix or match them any way you want and they're really good fights.

    "Let some of these play out to see who will fight next for the title. I think if Khabib is interested, he'll take the fight. You don't see Khabib saying, 'Leave me alone. Stop asking me'. So there's still a chance. That's the way I look at it."

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