Khabib Nurmagomedov is standing by his teammates in the wake of their Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) suspensions. The UFC lightweight champ is expected to sit out-of-action until his teammates’ NSAC suspensions are also up. The trio were involved in a post-fight brawl at UFC 229 this past October.
Following Nurmagomedov’s submission win over Conor McGregor, Khabib jumped the Octagon and attacked Dillon Danis. This sparked a brawl between both teams inside and outside the cage. As a result, all parties involved have been handed out punishments. McGregor has received a six-month suspension and $50,000 fine. Khabib has been given a nine-month suspension and $500,000 fine.
As for his teammates, Abubakar Nurmagomedov and Zubaira Tukhugov, they each received one-year suspensions and $25,000 fines. Khabib’s teammate, UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, addressed the situation on “The MMA Hour” recently. “DC” revealed that not only will Khabib sit out until his teammates are eligible to fight again, but he’s also paying their fines (via MMA Fighting):
“I think that Khabib is doing the most honorable thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Cormier said. “Not many guys will pay the fine, the 500 grand, also pay the fines of your teammates and brothers. He’s paying their money too. Whatever they fine [Abubakar and Tukhugov], he’s gonna pay it too.
“Those are his brothers. They were acting to help him, I guess. They’re suspended longer, he will sit with them. That’s one thing about those guys and their lifestyle and their community is that they are family at the highest level and what he’s doing is so honorable. Not many people would do that.
“He’s doing it with the idea that even if they take his title, it does not mean more to him than standing next to his brothers. It doesn’t get any better than that. I appreciate it. I do think the fine was steep. Whatever. He also said that he’s not gonna fight there anymore. He’s very firm in his approach, he’s very firm in what he wants to convey to the world.
“I’m very proud of him. I’m proud of the man that Khabib has become from the moment he walked into AKA to who he is today, I’m very proud of him.”
What do you think about Cormier’s reaction to Khabib paying his teammates’ NSAC fines?
