Tungviktsmästaren Daniel Cormier har under en längre tid tränat med lagkamraten och lättviktsmästaren Khabib Nurmagomedov på American Kickboxing Academy och är van vid att se den ryske mästaren visa upp sina kampsportsfärdigheter. Men Cormier vill nu berömma Khabib för hur han hanterat sviterna av det bråket som uppstod, efter Khabibs match mot Conor McGregor under UFC 229.
Khabib hoppade efter mötet ut ur buren för att attackera McGregors tränare Dillon Danis. Khabibs lagkamrater Abubakar Nurmagomedov and Zubaira Tukhugov blev även de involverade i bråket när de utbytte slag med McGregor inne i buren. Khabib betalade både för sig och sina lagkamrater.
Det här berättade Cormier via The MMA Hour:
I think that Khabib is doing the most honorable thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Not many guys will pay the fine, the 500 grand, also pay the fines of your teammates and brothers. He’s paying their money too. Whatever they fine [Abubakar and Tukhugov], he’s gonna pay it too. Those are his brothers. They were acting to help him, I guess. They’re suspended longer, he will sit with them. That’s one thing about those guys and their lifestyle and their community is that they are family at the highest level and what he’s doing is so honorable. Not many people would do that. He’s doing it with the idea that even if they take his title, it does not mean more to him than standing next to his brothers. It doesn’t get any better than that. I appreciate it. I do think the fine was steep. Whatever.
He also said that he’s not gonna fight there anymore. He’s very firm in his approach, he’s very firm in what he wants to convey to the world. I’m very proud of him. I’m proud of the man that Khabib has become from the moment he walked into AKA to who he is today, I’m very proud of him.
De fick alla avstängning och böter för händelsen, där Khabib fick betala 500000 dollar plus 9 månaders avstängning, medan Abubakar och Zubaira fick böter på 25000 dollar var.
