Khabib Nurmagomedov remembers late father with “There was a time” caption in IG post

The undefeated UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov recently remembered his late father, Abdulmanap, with another tribute post. The renowned Dagestani coach passed away in July 2020 following complications arising from COVID-19. Khabib Nurmagomedov, who had a very close relationship with his father, hung up his gloves after UFC 254 where he defeated Justin Gaethje by submission in the second round, taking his MMA record to 29-0.

Khabib Nurmagomedov pays tribute to Abdulmanap

Nurmagomedov paid homage to his father by sharing a throwback picture where the two can be seen talking to each other. The heartfelt pic was accompanied by a short caption which simply reads: "There was a time". Within a few hours, the pic went viral as it currently has more than a million likes and around 9000 comments on Instagram.  

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Fans remember the Dagestani legend

While reacting to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s post, many fans remembered Abdulmanap, while others prayed for his soul. Khabib’s coach Javier Mendez also paid tribute to the legend by writing, “Great Father! Great Teacher! Great Man. May God take care of Him”. A few days ago, The Eagle had shared another throwback video on his Instagram page where he can be seen wrestling with Abdulmanap. The father-son duo can be seen laughing as they try to take each other down.

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Despite the Russian making it clear that his fighting days are over, UFC President Dana White is optimistic the 32-year-old will compete again. Dana White claimed that he’s giving Nurmagomedov some time to recover from his last fight, adding that the two will meet soon to talk about The Russian’s future. "We talked about it and he just fought. Let him take some time, spend some time with his family, spend the holidays. There’s no rush,” White said at UFC post-fight conference.

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Khabib Nurmagomedov has no interest in coming back

Nurmagomedov was quick to dismiss White's comments, saying that “You can fight until you're 40 but there should be a goal”. The current UFC lightweight champion stated that he wanted to retire at the top of his career and he has done the same. He has defeated almost every top lightweight in the promotion and sees no reason for going back.

Also Read l Khabib Instagram: Khabib father receives tear-jerking tribute ahead of UFC 254