Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor have been rivals for years. One need look no further than the ugly post-fight fracas that broke out over seven years ago in the aftermath of UFC 229. After Nurmagomedov locked in a submission against McGregor inside the fourth round, a bigger battle started.
The ensuing fracas that spilled out in the wake of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s lightweight championship defense is certainly not one to be forgotten by any stretch of the imagination. In the aftermath of this brawl, kicked off by the then-champion throwing his mouth guard in the direction of his opponent, Nurmagomedov was banned nine months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Conor McGregor received a six-month ban from NSAC. Both the champion and challenger were given monetary penalties for their roles in the October 2018 skirmish, with Khabib Nurmagomedov being fined $500,000 (USD) and McGregor fined $50,000. In the case of Nurmagomedov, his ban could have been reduced pending his agreement to take part in an anti-bullying advertising campaign. No commercial was ever shot.
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Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor See Rivalry Reignited Over Social Media Thanksgiving Eve
While Thursday is Thanksgiving Day in the United States of America, there’s no chance that Khabib Nurmagomedov, who retired with an undefeated 29-0 record in October of 2020, will be breaking bread around the dinner table with any of his rivals. Certainly, he won’t be breaking bread with Conor McGregor.
On the day before Thanksgiving, Khabib Nurmagomedov took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to fan the flames of this longstanding rivalry with “The Notorious.” Even though McGregor deleted his original post, Nurmagomedov’s reply remained. Spoiler alert: It got intense in a hurry.
“You absolute liar,” Khabib Nurmagomedov wrote. “You will always try to darken my name, after you got destroyed that night, but you will never achieve that! Yes, good guys don’t do that.”
Nurmagomedov Goes After McGregor Over Claims Internet Papakha Auction Fleeced Buyers
Recently, “The Eagle” put on an online auction over the Telegram messaging service. In the auction, he sold digital forms of Papakha headdresses like the ones he’d wear while walking out to the fabled Octagon.
Papakhas are headdresses made out of sheep’s wool donned by men in Nurmagomedov’s home country of Russia. Due to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s popularity, the Papakha headdress has become commonplace.
In his takedown of Conor McGregor via social media, he defended himself and the use of the Papakha.
“They don’t create exclusive digital gifts with real time value, that you can share with your friends and family,” Nurmagomedov posted to the social media network. “Gifts in the shape of Papakha- hat that symbolize traditions and culture of Dagestan people. Traditions and culture that [are] slowly walking over this world, whether you like it or not!”
Khabib Nurmagomedov Wins Again
Though this latest dust-up played out over social media instead of in the cage, the winner of this battle between Nurmagomedov and McGregor is the former. Anybody who attacks anyone else over scamming people, especially if it’s done without any sort of merit or basis, is going to be in the wrong 100 percent of the time.
Khabib Nurmagomedov, much like he did seven years ago on pay-per-view, stood his ground against Conor McGregor’s attacks and did a masterful job of defending himself. If this had been a real MMA fight, the judges scorecards would have been read thusly: 50-47 across the board in favor of Nurmagomedov.
This is a man who’s always been known as a proven winner. On Wednesday, he got his hand raised in victory once more. He championed himself and the Dagestan culture with expert precision, something worthy of a hearty applause from MMA fans the world over.
