Georges St-Pierre has heralded Khabib Nurmagomedov's career achievements but says he would "never dare" to call out the now-retired fighter despite being repeatedly linked to a bout with the UFC lightweight champion.
Former two-weight UFC world champion St-Pierre was something of a subplot heading into Saturday's UFC 254 main event between Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje, with the legendary fighter appearing open to speculation in the media that Khabib would seek a legacy-defining showdown with the French-Canadian to finish his career with a perfect 30-0 record.
Instead, Khabib surprised everyone with the exception of his closest family members by tearfully announcing his retirement moments after his second-round submission win on "Fight Island."
And, with the potential for what would have been a lucrative fight with the unbeaten Nurmagomedov dead in the water, St-Pierre told ESPN that he believes Khabib's legacy is already secure and said how impressed he was with his "perfect" career.
"As a human being, I am very very happy for him. What a great career. What a great way to leave with a perfect legacy," St-Pierre said.
"Now the doors are all open for him. He finished on top. His stock is at its pinnacle. He can do whatever he wants. Sponsorship, publicity, open a school, acting, whatever he wants to do, the possibilities are endless.
Congratulations to @Teamkhabib for his amazing performance last night and a career as perfect as you can get as an athlete! pic.twitter.com/2zwVgCMlRX
"A lot of fighters in our sport have a tendency to finish too late in their career. So their stock is going down, and then they close the door for many opportunities that a lot of elite athletes could have as an after-career. Khabib has a choice now.
"I always feel sad when I see an athlete taking too many fights - a champion. Taking too many fights, and retire, having very bad performance and affect the well-being... that's something I really don't wish to someone.
"Maybe normally, I would (challenge him), but because of the circumstances, I would never dare to do that," St-Pierre said.
"I am not in his shoes, he is going through a tough time because his father passed away. He needs time to mourn his father. I respect Khabib a lot. What we do is a sport. This goes beyond sport, goes on to the human side and I just wish him and his family the best."
