Khabib Says Dana White Fueled McGregor Rivalry

Khabib Nurmagomedov says his rivalry with Conor McGregor was encouraged by Dana White.

The feud between Khabib and McGregor came to a head in 2018, when McGregor stormed the Barclays Centre ahead of UFC 223 and threw a dolly through a bus window carrying Khabib. When the two finally met in the octagon at UFC 229, Nurmagomedov dominated McGregor and submitted him in the fourth round to retain his lightweight title. In the aftermath, a brawl broke out between the two camps. While McGregor has called for a rematch, Khabib moved on, securing wins over Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje before retiring undefeated in 2020 with a 29-0 record.

“Hunter might not like hearing this, but it was Dana White who built that fight up. It was all Dana’s doing. I even told him he did a good job. ‘Good job, Dana.’ Not just him. Hunter alone wouldn’t have been enough. They were all involved,” Khabib said

Khabib On McGregor

Khabib also recalled his own preparation for the fight. McGregor had done everything to get into Khabib’s head, which was shown during their presser. McGregor was accused of disrespecting Khabib’s Islamic faith. McGregor began drinking whiskey as he continued to taunt Khabib. However, when the pair faced off in the Octagon, the Russian knew McGregor was a beaten man.

“Mentally, I was in the best state possible leading up to the fight. I don’t think it could have been done any better. I knew I did everything right… The staredown in the Octagon, when the referee brings the fighters together, he wasn’t looking at me. He realized everything he had done wouldn’t work. And he would have to fight me. It would be about skill versus skills, not mental games,” Nurmagomedov said