Khabib Nurmagomedov has put on a lot of weight since UFC retirement

Khabib Nurmagomedov has a genuine case to be classed as one of the UFC’s best ever.

He retired in 2020 with an undefeated streak of 29-0. His last fight, which was against Justin Gaethje, was the first and only time he walked into the Octagon without his father. Abdulmanap was a constant in his son’s career and, when he tragically passed away during the pandemic, Khabib made a promise to his mother that he wouldn’t compete again.

Khabib is the longest-reigning UFC lightweight champion in history, having held the title from April 2018 to his retirement date. It’s fair to say that ‘The Eagle’ has earned his time off.

He went through a lot in his career, including hard weight cuts. Khabib has gone on record many times to say that cutting weight to make 155lbs was tough for him.

Khabib is obviously under no restrictions with his weight now that he is firmly retired. The Russian was inducted into the UFC’s Hall of Fame earlier this year in the modern wing, with it being pretty much certain that he will never come out of retirement.

This has given him the freedom to become a coach and a promoter, which has allowed him to come back up to a weight he is comfortable with. In fact, Khabib is 50lbs heavier now compared to his UFC days.

The former lightweight champion had the following to say about his condition while at a charity event in London: “I weigh 205lbs now, maybe 204lbs in the morning if I don’t have dessert the night before. When I was an active fighter, I was 190lbs and I cut weight to 155lbs. I finished my career, I gained about five kilos, but I can’t do anything with this.

“It was one of the hardest things in my life to stay away from food, even now. It was hard because for 15 years I was on a diet, maybe more. To