Khabib Nurmagomedov

By FCF Staff

Although Conor McGregor and some of his supporters have argued the star provided Khabib Nurmagomedov a solid test at UFC 229, the undefeated fighter has a very different take.

The rivals fought in October, 2018, and Nurmagomedov submitted the former lightweight champ in round four. During the fight, the lightweights could be heard exchanging words, and some believe McGregor told Khabib “it’s just business”, in reference to the heated trash talk that led up to the bout.

At a recent press conference in Moscow, Nurmagomedov reportedly had this to say about the massive fight and McGregor.

“Conor’s trash talk? Yes, he had talked for a while (during the fight), but when I started pushing him, he immediately switched to the ‘It’s just business’ mode,” Khabib said (h/t Clyde Aidoo of MMA News). “I was even a bit disappointed. I expected him to be mentally tougher.”

“When I was ground-and-pounding him, talking to him, and he responded that it was just business, it looked like he was trying to calm me down to avoid a real beating, just like a son trying to justify himself in front of his angry father. Psychology is a very strong tool.”

Nurmagomedov (29-0) announced he was retiring after he choked out Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 this past October.

McGregor is booked to fight Dustin Poirier for a second time at UFC 257, January 23rd. In their 2014 clash, McGregor stopped Poirier in the opening round.