Conor McGregor is arguably one of the best trash-talkers in the business. The only person to have rivaled him in this domain would be Chael Sonnen. The former light heavyweight contender was known to have excerpts ready to bash his opponents verbally in any eventuality. McGregor might not be so well prepared, but he doesn’t have to be, because, as they say, he has the gift of the gab.
Surprisingly, one of McGregor’s fiercest opponents, Nate Diaz, enjoyed the quip made by the former against Khabib Nurmagomedov. During his buildup to the fight against Khabib at UFC 229, McGregor made various unsettling remarks against the Dagestani fighter. Unfortunately, McGregor also involved Khabib’s wife and religion in his verbal tirade.
On the full send podcast, when the host questioned Diaz if McGregor took it too far when bashing Khabib, the latter had this to say, “No, F*ck Khabib, that was funny. I was like, good, f*ck him. Khabib’s the worst.” It is no surprise that Diaz isn’t the biggest fan of Khabib and, as such, McGregor’s remarks amused the Stockton native. These remarks didn’t go unpunished as Khabib choked McGregor out at UFC 229, all the while taunting him during their grueling fight.
Nate Diaz once ‘slapped’ Khabib Nurmagomedov
Nate Diaz once claimed to have slapped the former lightweight champion of the UFC, Khabib Nurmagomedov at a World Series of Fighting (now PFL) event in 2015. The incident occurred when Diaz was watching his friend Jake Shields fight at the event. There, Khabib and his friends allegedly took a selfie right behind Diaz, and further mocked him. This roused Nate Diaz, who then confronted Nurmagomedov’s manager Ali Abdelaziz.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_Y3rmDxIc0
The confrontation turned physical when Nate Diaz’s older brother, Nick Diaz, threw a beer bottle at ‘The Eagle’. The subsequent brawl is where Nick allegedly slapped Nurmagomedov. Eventually, the fight resulted in the ejection and permanent ban of the Diaz brothers from any World Series Events in the future. Nate Diaz seemed pleased with the outcome and had this to say to Ariel Helwani in a subsequent interview.
“When I ran into him and his team at the World Series, I was standing there watching Jake, my friend, fight. And they took a group picture with me behind them, just to laugh at me, make fun of me. [Khabib] is like, ‘Ah, come on, man’ and they’re all laughing, 12 Russian dudes. I slapped him in his face for making fun of me and I’m like, ‘What?’ And he didn’t do nothing.”
Diaz further claimed that he slapped Khabib with impunity, never fearing retribution. It certainly is one hell of an incident, clearly on brand for Nate Diaz.
