Javier Mendez: Khabib Nurmagomedov unlikely to grapple Georges St-Pierre, devoting more time to family
Javier Mendez doesn’t think Khabib Nurmagomedov will end up grappling fellow UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre.
St-Pierre will take part in a UFC Fight Pass Invitational no-gi jiu-jitsu match Dec. 14, but is yet to draw an opponent. People are salivating at the idea of St-Pierre vs. Nurmagomedov, but Mendez said Nurmagomedov vowed to spend more time with his family. Although it would just be a grappling match as opposed to a fight, Mendez knows “The Eagle” takes every challenge seriously, so it would occupy plenty of his time.
“I don’t know if Khabib would do the competition because he stated that his family is what it’s all about,” Mendez told MMA Junkie in an interview set up by SafeBettingSites.com. “More devoted time for the family and knowing him, any challenge is a work. So he’s going to have to stay focused on one particular thing.
“He’s not going to take it lightly if he does. So, I don’t see that happening, but I could be wrong. I never spoke to him about it, if it’s any interest to him. But in my opinion, there is no better match to make than that one.”
Mendez said although Nurmagomedov is retired, he’s still active on the mats and would be more than capable of competing.
“I think it might be of interest to him because Khabib is always training,” Mendez said. “It’s not like he doesn’t grapple. He grapples all the time. So, he hasn’t stopped training, he just doesn’t train to fight. But he still does his cardio, he still grapples with the guys, because he always tells me, ‘How are the guys going to get ready for my level if they never know my level?’
“So, he grapples with the up-and-coming guys all the time. That’s why when you see all the guys that I train that are team Khabib, that’s why their ground is so darn good because they have Khabib who had his father train him on how to keep their grappling up and Khabib does that.”
