"His grandmother whispered these figures to him" - Khabib Nurmagomedov's manager rubbishes Craig Jones' claims of $5-million-demand to fight GSP 

Khabib Nurmagomedov has always been vocal about his respect for Georges St-Pierre and the regard that he has for the former UFC welterweight champion.

On various occasions, both fighters have praised each other and shared a mutual desire to meet in the octagon. A potential grappling match was also an alternative to a mixed martial arts matchup.

Australian grappler and BJJ black belt Craig Jones recently claimed that Nurmagomedov priced himself out of a potential matchup with a humongous ask. In an interview with B-Team Jiu Jitsu, Jones said:

“I was with the [UFC] Fight Pass guys and they were trying to ask me for opponents for ‘GSP,’ for ideas... I remember I said Khabib and I think they said Khabib wanted $5 million to do the grappling match. I was like, ‘Woah!’ Obviously that’s priced himself out there. Those guys would be cool to see. I’d love to train with those guys and feel what it’s like, you know?” [h/t MMA Mania]

Check out Jones comments below [39:21]:

Khabib Nurmagomedov's long-time manager Rizvan Magomedov rubbished Jones' claims in a statement to Russian news agency TASS.

He explained that there was only an enquiry of interest and no further details were discussed or neogtiations held. Magomedov also questioned Craig Jones' source.

"They proposed to hold a fight, but the conversation didn't even reach the amounts," said Magomedov. "They didn't even discuss, they didn't ask what amount and price. They asked if there was a desire or not. Then it was all over. And where did Craig Jones get the figure about 5 million, maybe his grandmother whispered these numbers to him. It looks funny."

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Khabib Nurmagomedov anticipates tougher rematch for Islam Makhachev against Charles Oliveira

Khabib Nurmagomedov's teammate and current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is set to defend his title for the second time at UFC 294.

He will face Charles Oliveira in a rematch of their UFC 280 fight, where Makhachev secured a second-round submission victory.

Khabib Nurmagomedov spoke about the upcoming fight in a recent interview with Gorilla Fighting. He stated that it will be a riskier fight for Makhachev and a tougher challenge than the first fight.

“Will the rematch be more difficult than the first fight? said Khabib. "Yes, it's more difficult. For Islam there will be more risk. Oliveira has nothing to lose, he has already lost. If in the first fight he had any concerns and so on, now he doesn’t. I don't think it will be an easy fight for both of them. For Islam, the second fight will be harder than the first.”

Check out Nurmagomedov's comments below: