Khabib Nurmagomedov and Nate Diaz had a brief encounter in the crowd at UFC 239.
Diaz is no stranger to confrontations. The Stockton Native has been involved in a fracas with Nurmagomedov in the past that involved chairs being thrown. Earlier tonight (July 6), the two crossed paths again.
Twitter user Brian Trumps posted the following footage of Nurmagomedov and Diaz having a run-in inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada:
Another Twitter user, DmG posted a closer view:
ESPN’s Brett Okamoto followed up on the incident, saying that Nurmagomedov’s manager Ali Abdelaziz claims that the ordeal didn’t escalate beyond a verbal spat.
“Doesn’t sound like there’s much (if anything) to the Nate, Khabib (!!) stuff. Ali Abdelaziz, Khabib’s manager, tells me Nate walked by, directed some words towards the camp and security removed him quickly. Member of Nate’s team also indicated there was not much to it.”
Nurmagomedov is scheduled to take on Dustin Poirier on Sept. 7 at UFC 242. The fight will be a lightweight title unification bout. Meanwhile, Diaz is set to take on Anthony Pettis at UFC 241 on Aug. 17.
The timing of Diaz’s encounter with Nurmagomedov is confusing to some as Diaz claimed he is done with the lightweight division. His upcoming bout with Pettis will be contested at welterweight.
