Georges St-Pierre Breaks Silence on How Close He Was to UFC Fight With Khabib Nurmagomedov

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nick Meyer | Last updated Jun 24, 2025 5:25 AM ET

The Ultimate Fighting Championship and its fans have rekindled discussions on who the greatest MMA fighter of all time is in recent days amid Jon Jones' retirement announcement, with names like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre getting airtime.

St-Pierre, 44, retired on February 21, 2019 with a career MMA record of 26-2 while Nurmagomedov, 36, retired in 2021 with a record of 29-0.

Recently, footage surfaced of an interview between St. Pierre and MMA journalist Ariel Helwani at Fanatics Fest discussing how close the former UFC Middleweight and Welterweight Champion was to fighting Nurmagomedov, who won the UFC Lightweight Title in April 2018 and defended it three times before his retirement.

"After Khabib retired, Dana called me and asked if I was interested in fighting Khabib," Helwani wrote on X. Monday.

"I found that strange. I didn't really believe it. I said let me think about it. Then I called (Nurmagomedov's manager) Ali Abdelaziz and Ali says that wasn't true.

"The first time we asked the UFC if they were willing to make the fight, they didn't want to do it," St-Pierre added.

"A few months after Khabib retired, Dana tried to make it because he knew we were both retired.

"I would have done it, I wouldn't have had (the) choice," St-Pierre added, later adding, "maybe it's better that way," in regards to the fight never happening.

"One of us would have lost sort of an aura..." St-Pierre added about the potential matchup with the Dagestani UFC lightweight legend.

GSP reveals how close he really was to fighting Khabib:

"After Khabib retired, Dana called me and asked me if I was interested in fighting Khabib. I found that was strange. I didn't really believe it. I said let me think about it. Then I called Ali Abdelaziz and Ali says that… pic.twitter.com/zOYZn1CpgG
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) June 23, 2025