Khabib Nurmagomedov speaks out against UFC 280 brawl: “We are tired of this nonsense!”
UFC 280 was a big night for Islam Makhachev, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abu Dhabi, and the Muslim world in general. Once again they have a UFC champion to represent them, which will undoubtedly help the sport grow in population across the world.
What doesn’t help the sport grow amongst Muslims is random violence like we saw outside the cage following Islam Makhachev’s win over Charles Oliveira. Rising welterweight star Khamzat Chimaev got into a punch-up with Abubakar Nurmagomedov, and while the incident didn’t make it onto the UFC 280 broadcast, the news spread like wildfire over the internet.
Cell phone videos of the near-brawl captured Khabib Nurmagomedov looking on from inside the cage with clear annoyance. Shortly after the event he brought Khamzat and his cousin Abubakar together to film a video statement clearing the air.
https://twitter.com/oocmma/status/1583936964012969984
“What happened yesterday does not show us well,” Khabib said. “Neither me, nor Khamzat nor Abubakar. To tell the truth, we are tired of this nonsense! Here we are gathered together as brothers. We talked to each other, and we apologized to each other, hugged. And Inshallah, I hope that in the future that we will only gather and fight for good reasons.”
“Today Islam won the belt, he’s the first,” Nurmagomedov continued. “The next one is very close, and it’s gonna be Khamzat. And Khamzat let us all get together. So when Khamzat wins the belt, it’s not for the showing off, not for this conversation, that we are going to celebrate. We will celebrate for our new champion, Inshallah.”
“I hope that our sad moment right here, that it will never happen to anyone else again,” he concluded. “So that people don’t talk badly about us, we will always be together as brothers, Inshallah.”
https://youtu.be/emPUdTUJtEA
Depending on how strictly one interprets Islamic doctrine, fighting is forbidden. Some exceptions are granted for sport (again, depending on interpretation), but what happened outside the cage at UFC280 is never permitted.
With the UFC and Khabib Nurmagomedov doing their best to portray mixed martial arts as a proper sport, it was important for Khabib to get in front of this controversy and squash it as quickly as possible. This isn’t the first time there’s been tension between Khamzat Chimaev and his Chechen compatriots and Khabib’s Dagestani team. But hopefully it will be the last.
What do you think of the incident between Khamzat Chimaev and Abubakar Nurmagomedov at UFC 280? Do you think their beef is truly settled? Let us know in the comments, PENN Nation!
