The action in the octagon may have been done following the UFC 280 main event between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira, but there was still some fighting to be done outside the cage.
After Makhachev claimed the lightweight belt with a second-round submission of Oliveira, Abubakar Nurmagomedov (who was in Islam’s corner for the bout) was confronted by Khamzat Chimaev outside the octagon.
Footage shows Abubakar and Khamzat shaking hands and exchanging words in what appeared to be a friendly altercation, but it soon turned into chaos, as Chimaev shoved Nurmagomedov and all hell nearly broke loose.
Thankfully, security was right there to break things up before they could escalate any further. This could have turned into a very ugly scene.
During his post-fight press conference, Dana White was asked about the altercation, but didn’t seem at all concerned. Via MMA Fighting:
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“What do I even say about that?” White said about the altercation. “It happens, especially with [Khamzat]. It happens.”
When asked what Khamzat was doing near the octagon, White claimed he didn’t even know he’d be in attendance.
“I didn’t even know Khamzat was coming tonight,” the UFC President told reporters. “He was invited here by Abu Dhabi. So the seats behind me here in Abu Dhabi are owned by Abu Dhabi.”
Apparently, there’s some bad blood between Khamzat and Abubakar, as the latter previously took shots at Chimaev on social media after the undefeated welterweight called out Khabib Nurmagomedov.
No word on whether or not this was the cause of Khamzat’s anger, but it sure would make a lot of sense.
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