When did Khabib Nurmagomedov retire from MMA and whom did he last fight?

Khabib Nurmagomedov ended his MMA career at UFC 254 in October 2020. The Russian was headlining the event and once again defended his UFC lightweight belt when facing Justin Gaethje. Nurmagomedov submitted Gaethje in the second round via a triangle choke.

'The Eagle' put on yet another dominant performance at the UFC pay-per-view event and vowed to end his MMA career due to having made a promise to his mother. Nurmagomedov's father had passed away in July 2020, which is another factor that likely played a role in the Russian's retirement decision.

Watch the UFC 254 main event here:

Justin Gaethje only managed to land 29 strikes when facing Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254. The Russian once again relied on his grappling, landing two out of three takedowns. Nurmagomedov needed just one submission attempt to finish the bout after just two rounds of fighting in Abu Dhabi.

'The Eagle' is yet to make a return to fighting, but has since launched his own MMA organization. Nurmagomedov founded Eagle FC, which mainly focuses on producing stars from Eastern Europe.

The Dagestan-born MMA legend only fought 13 times in the UFC, but beat the likes of Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and Conor McGregor in his last three bouts. Nurmagomedov made his organizational debut in 2012 and submitted Kamal Shalorus at UFC on FX 1: Guillard vs. Miller.

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Which MMA organization was Khabib Nurmagomedov fighting for before joining the UFC?

Before facing Kamal Shalorus at UFC on FX 1: Guillard vs. Miller in 2012, Khabib Nurmagomedov was competing in ProFC and fought six times in the organization. The Russian fought all six of his bouts within a year, fighting once each month between April and October 2011.

While competing in ProFC, Nurmagomedov beat Said Khalilov, Ashot Shahinyan, Kadzhik Abadzhyan, Hamiz Mamedov, Vadim Sandulitsky and Arymarcel Santos. All of these fights finished within the first round, which was enough to catch the eye of the UFC.

Watch Nurmagomedov compete in ProFC here:

The majority of Khabib Nurmagomedov's ProFC bouts were contested in Russia, meaning his UFC debut would have been a big cultural shift for 'The Eagle'. Nurmagomedov's organizational debut took place in Nashville, Tennessee, United States and ended in victory via submission for the Russian.