Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov Tug Of War Escalates, Former Calls The Latter “Terrorist”

The animosity between MMA fighter Conor McGregor and former UFC star Khabib Nurmagomedov is not hidden, and both lose no opportunity to comment on one another, which is acrimonious and often vitriolic.

The latest tirade by Conor McGregor against Khabib Nurmagomedov, with the former labeling the latter as a terrorist, occurred when it was revealed that one of the terrorists who carried out the terror attack in Dagestan, which left 20 people dead, was affiliated with a gym operated by the former UFC Lightweight Champion.

The terrorists had attacked religious sites and a police checkpoint in Dagestan. Dagestan had enjoyed peace, and there is very little Islamic radicalization compared to neighboring Chechnya, where Russia and local rebels had fought two bitter battles a couple of decades ago.

The Republic of Dagestan is well-known for producing numerous world champions in combat sports, including Nurmagomedov, whose fame as an MMA player needs no introduction.

However, the fact that one of the terrorists had stormed religious sites firing with automatic rifles has the security establishment worried.

Islamic fundamentalism is slowly penetrating all institutions, including the sporting arena.

The attackers were well-motivated and knew that it was a suicide mission. They particularly targeted synagogues because they knew they would have the sympathy of the Islamic world, especially after the devastating war in Gaza, which is seeing no signs of waning.

The terrorist who was involved in the attack with links to Nurmagomedov’s training facility located in the area was Gadzhimurad Kagirov, an accomplished freestyle wrestler turned undefeated MMA fighter. Kagirov, 28, was honored with the title of Master of Sport (an honorary title for successful athletes in Russia) in freestyle wrestling. He was a member representing Khabib’s Eagle MMA fight club, a training facility founded by jailed Dagestani oligarch Ziyavudin Magomedov.

However, for his part, Nurmagomedov categorically denied that Kagirov had been a member of his team. He added that the wrestler may have trained in his gym but was never a member of the team.

Several videos are circulating on social media which purportedly showed Russian security forces surrounding the gym in preparation to storm the location.

Former two-weight UFC champion McGregor also shared a post with the hashtag ‘#ConorWasRight’. The reference was linked to earlier allegations by Conor McGregor that Nurmagomedov was a ‘terrorist’, alluding to the infamous bus incident before UFC 223. Conor had made several allegations which included the former UFC Lightweight Champion’s team changing blood samples that the sporting authorities had taken to test for doping.

Also Read: Russia Hit By Another Terror Attack, 19 Including 15 Policemen Killed in Attack In Dagestan