Khabib Nurmagomedov Urges Conor McGregor to Seek Redemption

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor have long been bitter rivals, but the retired UFC star said he still hopes McGregor will change his ways.

Speaking Saturday at a Muslim religious gathering at the Tilles Center in New York — streamed live by influencer Sneako on Parti — Nurmagomedov addressed a question about McGregor, urging the Irishman to seek redemption.

“I don’t want to mention his name,” Nurmagomedov said. “This is punishment. This is punishment and [McGregor] keeps doing this, keeps doing this, keeps doing this. Everything that happened with these old people, woman this, alcohol this, drugs, everything. This is punishment. ... But the most beautiful part of this, Allah always gives for us—it doesn’t matter anybody, everybody—[a] chance to come back. Always, in this world, a chance to come back.”

McGregor, once the UFC’s biggest star, has been plagued by controversy in recent years. He was recently found liable for sexual assault in a civil case stemming from a 2018 incident in Dublin, a verdict he failed to appeal. He is also the defendant in another civil suit related to an alleged sexual assault in Miami in 2023.

McGregor has faced several other legal troubles, including a 2019 assault charge for punching an elderly man in a Dublin pub, and a viral social media scandal in July when rapper Azealia Banks leaked alleged nude photos of him.

His feud with Nurmagomedov made international headlines in 2018, when McGregor infamously threw a dolly through the window of a bus carrying Nurmagomedov and other fighters ahead of their lightweight title fight. The rivalry culminated later that year at UFC 229, when Nurmagomedov defeated McGregor by fourth-round submission.

Despite their history, Nurmagomedov said McGregor still has an opportunity to turn his life around.

“This is the most beautiful thing,” Nurmagomedov said. “It doesn’t matter how you bad, Allah is going to give you a chance to always come back. I think he has a chance and he has to change the way how he’s living. Why am I talking about this? ... If he’s going to change, he can change with him so many lives, too. And that’s why I wish him to change himself.”

McGregor, who has not fought since suffering a broken leg against Dustin Poirier in July 2021, remains one of MMA’s most polarizing figures.