Dana White: Khabib Nurmagomedov could have been GOAT if he fought longer

Dana White says longevity cost Khabib Nurmagomedov in the GOAT discussion. Nurmagomedov (29-0) retired in the midst of his prime after three dominant UFC lightweight title defenses over Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, and current champion Justin Gaethje. He hung his gloves up as a promise to his mother after his father and coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, passed away. In Daniel Cormier's eyes, Nurmagomedov is the GOAT after retiring with an undefeated record and zero involvement with performance-enhancing drugs. As Nurmagomedov's protege Islam Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) enters his first welterweight title defense against Ian Machado Garry (17-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) in Saturday's UFC 330 main event (Paramount+) at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, his name is now being thrown around in the GOAT conversation. "He's obviously accomplished more than Khabib because he fought longer," White told TMZ Sports of Makhachev. "Who knows what Khabib could have accomplished if he had stayed in the game. And realistically, if Khabib had done what everybody pretty much knows Khabib could have done, he definitely would be the GOAT." As for Makhachev, White already said he's on his way to becoming the greatest of all time. With a win, Makhachev can break the record for most consecutive wins in UFC history, surpassing Anderson Silva's mark of 16. However, the UFC CEO said one thing is hurting Makhachev's case from being No.1. "If he doesn't have that one loss, I'd probably consider him the GOAT right now," White said. This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Dana White: Khabib Nurmagomedov could have been GOAT if he fought longer