Beneil Dariush has revealed why he was disappointed after former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov announced his retirement from the sport.
In an interview, Dariush hailed Nurmagomedov as the greatest lightweight of all-time. The Assyrian-American went on to add that he was sad because he missed out on the opportunity to fight the undefeated Russian.
“Yeah, I mean [Khabib is] the greatest lightweight of all-time. If you don’t want to fight the greatest lightweight of all time, what are you doing here? Get out of here,” Dariush said.
According to Dariush, Khabib is a very active champion. He admires Khabib’s “champion demeanour” and his ability to keep the division going forward. Dariush also took a jab at former champion Conor McGregor, who was absent during his reign.
Dariush on Chandler vs. Oliveira
In the main event of UFC 262, Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler will fight for the vacant lightweight championship title. Dariush claims that, unlike McGregor, whoever wins the UFC lightweight title at UFC 262 will be an active champion.
“I think both Chandler and Oliveira are going to be active champions. They are not going to just hang back and you know, we had Conor being champion for a while and he didn’t really defend the belt.
“We’ve had Khabib who was great and kept defending the belt. To be honest, a part of me is very disappointed he retired but I think overall, this is a good thing. I think the fact that two active guys are fighting for the belt is a great thing,” he said.
Former interim champion Tony Ferguson will face Dariush in the co-main event of UFC 262 this weekend. By defeating Ferguson on the night, Dariush will get a little closer to the much-coveted title shot.
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