Khabib Nurmagomedov says UFC rival Conor McGregor “deserves punishment” after court ruling

Khabib Nurmagomedov has finally reacted to the recent Conor McGregor drama.

For much of this month, McGregor was embroiled in a highly publicized civil trial stemming from an 2018 incident at a Dublin hotel, during which he was alleged to have sexually assaulted a woman named Nikita Hand. On Nov. 22, a jury in Dublin’s High Court ruled McGregor was civically liable for assault, and he was ordered to pay just shy of $260,000 in damages to Hand.

The fallout has been swift for McGregor. Several of his corporate partners – most notably Proper No. 12 Irish Whiskey — have distanced themselves from him, and he’s been on the receiving end from fiery criticism from many of his combat sports rivals, such as Jake Paul.

Khabib, arguably the greatest rival of the Irishman’s MMA career, was the latest to chime in.

The retired MMA legend reacted in a post on X, throwing his support behind a crypto project called Convict McGregor, which claims it will “donate towards the legal fees of the victims of Convict McGregor.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov promotes a crypto coin called “Convict McGregor”:

“Good job guys, you have my full support. This guy deserves punishment.”#UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/aaFVXN2Kls

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) November 27, 2024

“Good job guys, you have my full support,” Khabib wrote (h/t Championship Rounds). “This guy deserves punishment.”

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor shared one of the fiercest rivalries in MMA history.

The rivalry came to a head at UFC 229 in 2018 when, after months of vicious trash talk and violent public encounters, they collided for the lightweight title. Nurmagomedov, the defending champion, ultimately won in style, dominating McGregor en route to a fourth-round submission win. But that’s not where the drama ended. After the fight, Khabib and McGregor’s teams were involved in a wild brawl inside and outside the Octagon — a scene that will live on in infamy among fight fans.

Khabib reigned as the UFC lightweight champion until he retired in 2020. He rode off into the sunset with a perfect 29-0 record that also included wins over Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier.

McGregor, who previously held featherweight and lightweight gold, has gone 1-2 since losing to Khabib, first knocking out Donald Cerrone, then suffering back-to-back stoppage losses to Poirier.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM