UFC President Dana White told TMZ Sports that the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) might keep Khabib Nurmagomedov’s purse—$2 million—after he won against Conor McGregor at UFC 229 on Oct. 6, 2018.
“They [NSAC] took his whole purse right now and they’re talking about keeping his purse,” said White.
White disagrees with that outcome, but he also believes that Nurmagomedov shouldn’t be allowed to keep it all either.
“I think they should take a quarter of a million dollars from him,” he said.
When the interviewer prompted White on Nurmagomedov’s title as champion of the Lightweight division, White said that he “absolutely” believes that he should be allowed to keep his title. He also added that Nurmagomedov should receive a four- to six-month suspension on top of the quarter of a million dollar fine.
White told an ESPN interviewer that shortly after Nurmagomedov’s victory, Dillon Danis, one of McGregor’s coaches, started “talking smack” to him. The Russian lightweight champion then leapt out of the octagon and attacked Danis. Meanwhile, two of Nurmagomedov’s team members leapt into the octagon and started attacking McGregor. A brawl between both their teams erupted, but not without the intervention of security guards and New York police officers, according to ESPN.
He then showed his disappointment over the incident.
“Conor’s corner man got this thing going, Khabib diving over was ridiculous,” White said. “You just won a great fight. You fought brilliantly. You’re about to get the belt on and people are going to respect the fact that you fought well and you won the fight. But instead you dive over the cage and start a huge melee with Conor’s corner.”
“There’s going to be big money fines and these guys are in big trouble.”
Khabib’s Treatment
When White brought up the suspension penalty, the TMZ interviewer questioned whether Khabib was being treated fairly in comparison to McGregor’s punishment for his past behavior.
In April of this year, Nurmagomedov was riding inside a bus to leave a media event, when McGregor gatecrashed the event with his entourage and started attacking that bus, The Epoch Times reported.
McGregor ended up throwing a hand truck at the bus, shattered a window, and injured UFC fighter Michael Chiesa who suffered from lacerations to his face.
The TMZ interviewer claimed that McGregor never received a suspension for his actions.
“Yes he did,” White said. “Conor got kicked out of the state of New York, he can’t fight in the state New York.”
But since NSAC has gotten involved, Nurmagomedov might not be able to fight anywhere in the United States if he receives a suspension from them.
White said that the punishment for Nurmagomedov should be harsher due to the difference in circumstance.
“This wasn’t at an event, this was in the bowels of the Barclay’s Center,” said White. “He [McGregor] was dealing with the state of New York and the police, in this thing, he [Nurmagomdeov] was a part of something that was regulated by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. He was at an event with more people that have ever been at a UFC event at Vegas.”
