After the Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor debacle, UFC president Dana White in 2018 said that he wouldn’t let the lightweight fighter from Dagestan, Islam Makhachev, compete in the organization.
The rivalry between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the most violent in UFC history. The two engaged in a lot of trash-talking before the fight, especially McGregor. He brought even Nurmagomedov’s personal life into the mix.
The 2018 UFC 229 main event featured the adversaries finally facing off inside the UFC cage. ‘The Notorious’ couldn’t outperform the Dagestani lightweight. Nurmagomedov defeated him via a Neck Crank. And as everyone would expect, the conflict may then come to an end. But worse was yet to come.
Why did Dana White say he won’t allow Islam Makhachev in the UFC after UFC 229?
Following the victory bell at UFC 229, ‘The Eagle’ did something no one would expect from him. He jumped outside the cage to attack some of McGregor’s teammates. After that, all hell broke loose.
While all the attention was diverted towards team McGregor and ‘The Eagle.’ Nurmagomedov’s teammates, Islam Makhachev and Zubaira Tukhugov jumped inside the octagon and attacked McGregor from behind.
Subsequently, enraged White in an interview said, “The guys who jumped in will never fight here again. I’ve been working hard to promote this sport. This is not what a mixed martial arts event is normally like.”
However, the Irishman, for some reason, didn’t press charges against the attackers. Meanwhile, The Nevada State Athletic Commission officially suspended and fined Nurmagomedov and McGregor for their participation in the UFC 229 post-fight brawl.
Makhachev is the new lightweight UFC champion
Although the rivalry didn’t end, some legal things between the teams were sorted. Makhachev continued to compete in the lightweight division and managed to remain undefeated to date.
Last week, the Dagestani fighter was crowned the new UFC champion after defeating Charles Oliveira. Makhachev became the second Dagestani UFC champion.
Now, the UFC is working on making a match between Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski, with both the lightweight title and number on P4P position on the line, per White.
What are your thoughts on this match-up? What do you guys think about White’s words?
