Khabib Nurmagomedov won the fight at UFC 229, but he tried to win the war -- and he might have lost his reputation in the process.
Khabib, a San Jose-based Russian fighter, was miffed at Conor McGregor for what he and his teammates said and did before Saturday night's lightweight title fight in Las Vegas. That included comments about Khabib's religion and his family, as well as an ugly incident before UFC 223, in which McGregor threw a dolly at a bus carrying Nurmagomedov and other fighters.
So, after Khabib submitted McGregor in the fourth round to retain his belt, he threw his mouthpiece toward his opponent's corner, then jumped out of the octagon, after, according to UFC president Dana White, one member of "The Notorious" entourage started screaming at Nurmagomedov. Bloody Elbow said Bellator fighter Dillion Danis, McGregor teammate, seemed to be Khabib's target.
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Regardless of why it happened, it was a fight-marring scene.
White refused to put the belt on Khabib after the fight because he was scared how the pro-McGregor crowd at T-Mobile Arena might react. And, if this Twitter video is evidence, White was correct to delay that.
“I said, ‘If we put the belt on him in the octagon, they’re gonna be throwing whatever they got down into the octagon,' " White recalled, via Bloody Elbow. "So I said, ‘Let’s just try to get him out of here without any incident.’ ”
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Whether Khabib retains his championship belt now is up to the Nevada Athletic Commission, which is investigating the brawl, White said. White did say if Khabib is suspended, he might lose the belt if that ban is too long.