Khabib Nurmagomedov reveals why he turned down 'The Ultimate Fighter' coaching role against Conor McGregor

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Conor McGregor is perhaps the fight that UFC wants to book more than any other. It was the most highly-purchased PPV in UFC history and it's unlikely to be topped anytime soon.

Khabib Nurmagomedov defeated Conor McGregor decisively in 2018. Given the nature of the victory, it normally wouldn't warrant a rematch. However, the business of it certainly does.

That's what UFC did when they attempted to make The Ultimate Fighter with Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov. However, The Eagle told Brett Okamoto of ESPN (H/T MMA Junkie) that he wouldn't take the offer even if UFC paid him $5 million:

Even if they give me $5 billion — even if they give me the UFC — I [would] never do this.”@TeamKhabib won’t give Conor McGregor “good attention” by coaching TUF against him 🚫 (via @bokamotoESPN) pic.twitter.com/SVOI2YNCv3

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 13, 2020

“This Ultimate Fighter with him. This is good attention for him. I don’t want to give him this. I never give him this, even if they gave me $5 billion dollars. Even if they give me UFC (ownership), I’ll never do this. This is good attention for him,” Nurmagomedov said

Khabib Nurmagomedov stated that he was done with Conor McGregor and is looking ahead:

“Done. Everything is done. October 6 (at UFC 229), I finished him and I finished everything about him. I had new challenges – Dustin Poirier, now, Justin Gaethje. We’ll see who’s going to be next but I don’t think it’s going to be Conor McGregor,” Nurmagomedov said.

Will we ever see Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Conor McGregor 2?

As much as the UFC would love to re-book the fight, it's ultimately up to Khabib Nurmagomedov and he has rejected it on multiple occasions. It seems as though he's truly done with Conor McGregor and it's hard to blame him for not having any interest in the fight.

Perhaps the fight that Khabib Nurmagomedov wants the most is one against Georges St-Pierre, who also admitted that the Russian is the only fighter that would interest him in a comeback.

With that said, it's hard to say "never" when there is so much at stake.