Khabib wants Pettis for return fight, will settle for Ferguson or Alvarez

Although he has not fought in well over a year, Khabib Nurmagomedov remains a talking point in the MMA community, as he has managed to stay relevant during his spell on the sidelines nursing another knee injury.

Between his recent brawl with the Diaz brothers at WSOF 22 and his recent affiliation with an upstart Bahrain MMA team founded by one of the country's crown princes, Khabib has been a busy lightweight with no shortage of headlines in the MMA sphere.

During a recent interview with MMAJunkie.com while in Bahrain, Khabib revealed that he is primarily interested in a match-up against former champion Anthony Pettis.

"I want to fight Anthony Pettis because he is the No. 1 ranking. All my life I wanted fight against best fighters. Now, the best fighter in the lightweight division is Rafael Dos Años, but he already have opponent, Cowboy Cerrone, so who's next? Anthony Pettis. So, I want to fight him."

However, Khabib, who plans to return in December, is prepared to settle for former Bellator champ Eddie Alvarez or even rising contender Tony Ferguson.

"If the UFC no want to give me this guy, then I do not know. Maybe Eddie Alvarez and Tony Ferguson , like these guys. The lightweight division now has a lot of tough guys. Now I want to come back. I did not fight for one and a half years and this is very hard for me. Two surgeries in a row, it is a very hard time for me. No. 1 [goal for me is to] rehab my knee, come back, beat somebody, and next year fight for the title."