Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre have long been hailed as some of the greatest fighters to have graced the UFC octagon. However, 'The Eagle' has always regarded 'GSP' as one of his idols.
In a recent conversation with Daniel Cormier, Khabib Nurmagomedov revealed his favorite performances by Georges St-Pierre.
"Matt Hughes and Matt Sera, this is two fights, my favorite GSP fights. I think, my opinion, it was GSP prime time, that time. I was watching with my father his fights. All the time my father watch his fights, I think he was my father's favorite fighter," admitted Khabib Nurmagomedov.
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Khabib Nurmagomedov on what makes Georges St-Pierre special
Over the course of his career in the UFC, Georges St-Pierre managed to scale the peaks of success across two weight classes.
Etching his name in MMA folklore, GSP paved the way for a legion of fighters to follow. If what Khabib Nurmagomedov has to say can be believed, 'The Eagle' is one of those fighters.
"I think he was the first fighter who become a well rounded fighter. He can strike, he can wrestle, he can take you down, he can hold you there, he can give you crazy ground and pound, he can do a lot of submission. In my opinion at that time, he was the first in UFC. He represents real mixed martial arts," admitted Khabib Nurmagomedov.
While MMA fans were still reeling from the news of Khabib Nurmagomedov's abrupt retirement from active contention, what offered them hope was the possibility of a fight between GSP and the Dagestani phenom.
The fight would have marked the perfect swansong for Khabib, who has enjoyed a significant amount of success. What's more, it would have rounded out one of the greatest UFC and MMA records in the world.
However, the former lightweight champion's decision to pull out of active contention is something that is unlikely to change. The only way one can witness a scrap between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre anymore would be while playing the promotion's video game:UFC 4.