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Khabib Nurmagomedov says he's in his wrestling 'prime' six years after abrupt UFC retirement

Published

3 months ago

on

Khabib Nurmagomedov says he's in his wrestling 'prime' six years after abrupt UFC retirement

UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov says he's wrestling better now than at any time in his legendary fighting career.

Khabib Nurmagomedov remains one of the few UFC greats to leave Mixed Martial Arts at the top of the sport. After defeating current UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje at UFC 254, Nurmagomedov opted to hang up the gloves just months after his father's tragic death.

Six months after his retirement, Nurmagomedov remains a big part of MMA as a coach for fighters such as Islam Makhachev and his cousin, Umar Nurmagomedov. Makhachev, in particular, has repeatedly touted Nurmagomedov's discipline since retiring, as the UFC Hall of Famer remains a constant presence in training.

Known for his elite wrestling inside the Octagon, Nurmagomedov is arguably one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. But Nurmagomedov might be on another level six years since ending his career.

Khabib Nurmagomedov claims he's in his wrestling ‘prime' despite long UFC absence

In a recent appearance on Smol Talk, Nurmagomedov was asked about his wrestling acumen today compared to when he was competing in the UFC, and gave a shocking answer.

“People think my prime was between 2018 and 2020, but I wasn't in my prime back then. I turned 32 in September 2020, and I retired in October,†Nurmagomedov said.

“So I hadn't even really begun yet. My grappling has improved tremendously since then. In 2026, it's much better than it was in 2020. I watch my old fights now and think, ‘How could I have made that mistake here?' Meanwhile, people watching from the outside say, ‘Wow, what a level.'

“But to me, that's not the level. My grappling is far better now. And the guys who trained with me in both 2020 and 2026 say the same thing.â€

Despite numerous attempts by the UFC to lure Nurmagomedov out of retirement, the UFC legend remains steadfast in his decision to walk away.

How would Khabib Nurmagomedov fare against the current top UFC lightweights? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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MMA

UFC 333 ‘Volkanovski vs. Evloev’ play-by-play, results & round scoring

Published

11 hours ago

on

October 24, 2026

By

UFC 333 ‘Volkanovski vs. Evloev’ play-by-play, results & round scoring

Sherdog’s live
UFC 333 “Volkanovski vs. Evloev†coverage will begin Saturday
at 10 a.m. ET.

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 4

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 5

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 4

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

Round 5

Sherdog Scores

Brian Knapp scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Mike Sloan scores the round:

The Official Result

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MMA

UFC 333: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Movsar Evloev live stream watch party

Published

12 hours ago

on

October 24, 2026

By

UFC 333: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Movsar Evloev live stream watch party

MMA Fighting has a live stream watch party for Saturday's UFC 333 event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. In the main event, two-time champ Alexander Volkanovski defends the featherweight title against the undefeated Movsar Evloev.

Join MMA Fighting's Mike Heck and Jed Meshew as they watch the UFC 333 main card, and more.

In the co-main event, bantamweight champion Petr Yan puts his title on the line against former champ Merab Dvalishvili in a high stakes trilogy bout.

UFC 333 also includes a flyweight clash between Lone'er Kavanagh and Ramazan Temirov, while Alexander Volkov looks to cement his place in the heavyweight title discussion when he faces Rizvan Kuniev.

The UFC 333 main card opens up with an exciting 145-pound matchup between Aaron Pico and Losene Keita.

Watch the UFC 333 live stream watch party in the video above, which kicks off at 1:3o p.m. ET / 10:30 a.m. PT with the light heavyweight clash between Dominick Reyes and Azamat Murzakanov.

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MMA

Movsar Evloev warns Alexander Volkanovski: He hasnt beaten anyone like me

Published

1 day ago

on

October 23, 2026

By

Movsar Evloev warns Alexander Volkanovski: 'He hasn't beaten anyone like me'
Movsar
Evloev says he has pushed himself harder than ever ahead of his
first UFC title shot.

Evloev (20-0) is scheduled to challenge Alexander
Volkanovski (28-4) for the
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight title at
UFC 333 on Oct. 24 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Ahead of the
bout, the unbeaten Russian discussed how his preparations have
differed from previous training camps.

Movsar Evloev details toughest training camp ahead of Alexander
Volkanovski title fight at UFC 333

Evloev said he increased his workload across all aspects of
training to address any potential weaknesses. He believes that
preparation will help him showcase his abilities in Saturday's main
event.

“This preparation is different just because I pushed more than
ever,†Evloev said in a pre-fight interview. “And we did more of
everything to make sure we didn't miss anything. He hasn't beaten
anyone like me. There's many things that make me special, like
unique. And I'm about to show it Saturday.â€

Evloev has long been considered a leading featherweight contender,
with Volkanovski acknowledging him as the most deserving
challenger. However, Diego Lopes
received a title rematch against Volkanovski earlier this year
before Evloev earned his opportunity. The Russian's lack of UFC
finishes has fueled debate about his wait for a championship bout,
though the promotion has not established it as the reason for the
delay.

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