Khabib Mocks Paul After MVP Comeback Pitch

Jake Paul's pitch to bring Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement for his new promotion did not land.

Paul approached the UFC Hall of Famer backstage at PFL New York last week, shortly after Most Valuable Promotions announced its merger with the PFL under the MVP banner, according to MMA Fighting. The YouTuber-turned-boxer told Nurmagomedov that a comeback fight would "monumentally change the sport forever," per video footage Paul posted to YouTube.

Khabib's Response To Paul's Comeback Offer

"With what we're doing, this merger with MVP, we're changing MMA forever, where we give fighters a better place to live," Paul said in the clip. "If you fought for us, it would monumentally change the sport forever. So, it's about change."

Nurmagomedov called the merger "good for MMA" but his full response was not shown in the footage. Days later, the retired lightweight posted on Telegram with a photo of himself looking unimpressed. "My face when they start trying to persuade me to come back," he wrote, per a translation from the original Russian.

Paul and MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian attended the event to support the merger, which featured lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov defending his title against Archie Colgan. Khabib cornered his cousin for the fight. The undefeated Dagestani has ruled out a return to competition since stepping away in 2020 following his title defense against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 and the death of his father Abdulmanap. The PFL will officially rebrand as MVP in 2027.

Reported via:

• MMA Fighting — Jake Paul tries to coax Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement for MVP; Khabib responds