UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is set to visit the UAE, according to UFC president Dana White, who has insisted the Russian will not be quitting the organisation.
Nurmagomedov produced the biggest win of his career earlier this month, defeating rival Conor McGregor via fourth round submission to extend his unbeaten MMA record to 27 fights.
However, it was the aftermath to the fight that gained the most attention, when Nurmagomedov climbed over the octagon to attack fellow fighter Dillon Danis and spark a mass brawl. At the same time, Nurmagomedov's friend and training partner Zubaira Tukhugov jumped into the octagon and sucker-punched McGregor.
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Tukhugov's scheduled bout with Artem Lobov - another of McGregor's friends and training partners - was subsequently cancelled, and Nurmagomedov threatened to leave the UFC if the organisation fired Tukhugov for his actions.
“We’re good,” White said when asked by TMZ if the issues with Nurmagomedov had been resolved. “We’re good with Khabib. You guys are still posting that ... that was a week ago. A week ago! A lot happens in a week in this business.”
Nurmagomedov himself also faced disciplinary action for instigating the post-fight brawl, with the UFC initially refusing to release his purse for his victory over McGregor, while the police got involved before McGregor and Danis refused to press charges.
Nurmagomedov has since been paid for UFC 229 and White is confident the Russian's future will be with the company.
“We’re good,” White said. “We worked it out. We’re gonna get everything worked out. Obviously, he was a little upset, he was a little fired up.
"We’ll get it all worked out. Guys get very emotional, man. That was a very emotional fight for him, obviously. And at the end of the day, Khabib’s a great guy. We’ve always had a great relationship with him. So it’s all good, brother. This will all work out.”
White would not be drawn into future plans for Nurmagomedov, with a fight with Tony Ferguson a possibility, while a rematch with McGregor makes financial sense given their first clash smashed pay-per-view records.
However, the UFC president revealed Nurmagomedov will visit the UAE, although no dates for his arrival were mentioned.
“We haven’t talked about that yet,” White said. “He’s doing this whole tour right now. He’s going to the UAE, he was over with [Russian president Vladimir] Putin, he’s doing all this stuff. Let this guy enjoy his win and then we’ll figure it all out.”
