Khabib Nurmagomedov says he choked Justin Gaethje out to avoid injuring him
Khabib Nurmagomedov retired as the unbeaten UFC lightweight champion at 29-0-0 minutes after a dominant win over Justin Gaethje in the main event of Saturday's UFC 254 show.
Nurmagomedov used a triangle choke in the second round.
According to former two-division champion Daniel Cormier (h/t Jeff Wagenheim), Nurmagomedov utilized the choke rather than an armbar to avoid injuring his opponent in what became a walk-off victory.
"He told me when he was watching the interviews over the course of the week, he saw that Justin said that he would never tap," Cormier explained when speaking with ESPN's Ariel Helwani on the "DC & Helwani" show. "He was going to do the armbar, but he had heard Justin saying all week that he would never tap, and he didn't want to hurt him in front of his parents. So he went to the triangle and just kind of put him to sleep."
Cormier added that Nurmagomedov told him:
"If I put him to sleep, he'll wake up and everything will be OK."
Gaethje's parents were permitted to attend the show held at the "Fight Island" site on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. The American, who fell to 22-3-0 overall, tapped out multiple times while in the choke, but the referee missed the submission before Gaethje went out.
Cormier also told Helwani he believes Nurmagomedov will keep a promise he made to his mother following the death of his father in July and not return to the octagon.
"This is real," Cormier said. "Khabib doesn't lie. Khabib doesn't play 'I'm retiring and I'm coming back.'"
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