[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 4, 2018, 3:32 PM]
Late last month, former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion Conor McGregor went on the attack against the father of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in an Instagram post that was a diss. This is where McGregor called Abdulmanap a “quivering coward.”
Abdulmanap has fired back at McGregor for those comments by stating in a recent interview that those antics won’t get under his or his son’s skin while preparing for this historic title fight at the UFC 229 pay-per-view event where Khabib will make his next title defense against the Irish King.
”Mentally they can’t get (under our skin),” he told RT. “In that aspect we are standing firm. We are even letting certain things pass. But we are not forgiving anything. The cage and the fight are still ahead.”
Khabib was supposed to fight Tony Ferguson for the title at the UFC 223 pay-per-view event but Ferguson had to pull out due to an injury and Khabib ended up fight Al Iaquinta in the main event. Abdulmanap noted that they still want the Ferguson fight.
“For the hype, for the money, to bury Conor’s era it is even better for us,” he said. “But if we talk purely sportswise, we still want the Ferguson fight. I really want him to come back and defeat Pettis. The intrigue is still there, and the whole world is interested (in the Ferguson fight). It would be 11 and 0 Khabib [in the UFC], 11 and 0 for him. And the fight that hasn’t happened yet.”
The upcoming UFC 229 pay-per-view event is set to take place on Saturday, October 6, 2018, from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The main card will air on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET. The preliminary card will air on FOX Sports 1 at 8 p.m. ET and the promotion’s streaming service, UFC Fight Pass.
Discussion: What are your thoughts on these comments made by Khabib Nurmagomedov’s father? Sound off in the comment section.
