In the world of MMA, there have been some fights that have become bigger than the sport. Such was the rivalry between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov and the things leading up to their fight at UFC 229. The two were stars of the lightweight division of the UFC at the time, and they were polar opposites: the modest, religious Khabib and the haughty, trash-talking McGregor.
However, the fight between them ended in the fourth round with Khabib submitting a tired and beaten-up Conor, but the animosity is still regarded as one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports. However, a recent AI-generated picture went viral where the two UFC legends were seen hugging each other. While it seems wild to even think of anything of that sort happening anytime soon, artificial intelligence has no limits.
However, fans were not convinced that the two former champions would be making peace because of the events that occurred in 2018. Here is how they reacted to the “disturbing” picture:
Will McGregor and Khabib ever hug it out 🤗 pic.twitter.com/4SOOk6vU0v
— MMA UNCENSORED (@MMAUNCENSORED1) October 1, 2023
A fan felt that combat sports rivalries are of a different nature, as they wrote, “Bro, these are gladiators and conquerors, not basketball players”. Another fan was not too impressed by the AI-generated image, as they commented, “It just feels weird now”.
“Man called his wife a towel and laughed at the demise of his father,” wrote another X user who was not hopeful of the two superstars becoming friends. “This is disturbing,” wrote a fan who clearly was not impressed by the picture. “Never. Bitter rivals until the end,” asserted another MMA fan.
The reactions from the fans were indicative of the fact that the grudge fight that happened between the ‘Eagle‘ and the ‘Notorious’ was much more than the usual trash-talking that fighters employ to promote their bout.
What happened between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov?
Conor and Khabib used to get along well, but over time, their friendship deteriorated. Conor’s taking jibes at Khabib’s father and coach, the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. The Dagestani champion’s slapping of Conor’s old pal Artem Lobov were just two examples of how the animosity heated up as time went on.
Even the press conference before the fight lives rent-free in the heads of fight fans around the world. While Khabib only talked about his fight tactics and training for the lightweight championship bout in the main event of UFC 229, the Irishman crossed all limits.
He made fun of Khabib’s family and his religion, among other things. Khabib at one point also showed a typical war mentality, as he famously said, “Irish, only 6 million; Russia, 150 million”.
As Dana White put it, “all hell broke loose” tonight at #UFC229 as a brawl erupted following Khabib Nurmagomedov’s win over Conor McGregor.😲
See for yourself.👀
Full story: https://t.co/6nm0uiWQSZ pic.twitter.com/Nphd0gO1dY
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) October 7, 2018
The build-up to the fight made the event in Las Vegas the biggest that the UFC has ever seen to date with regard to PPV sales. However, the fight was pretty much dominated by Khabib, who felt insulted when Conor tapped in the fourth round to save his jaw from dismantling.
The Russian was not done as he wanted more, so he jumped out of the octagon and launched an attack on Conor’s training partner, Dillon Danis, who previously also engaged in verbal attacks against Khabib. When this was going on, some of Khabib’s teammates went inside the octagon to attack Conor. So, a huge brawl erupted, which was followed by penalties and legal repercussions.
Nurmagomedov reportedly paid a $500,000 fine and received a 9-month suspension. Conor McGregor was given a 6-month suspension and a $50,000 fine. Conor has been inactive in MMA lately and Khabib retired back in 2020. However, their epic fight is still regarded as a game-changer for not just UFC but also MMA as a sport.