UFC Lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov has confronted SBG fighter Arterm Lobov in a hotel lobby before UFC 223 in Brooklyn, New York this weekend.
Nurmagomedov will fight Featherweight champion Max Holloway in the main event on Saturday while Lobov will fight Alex Caceres in the final fight of the Fight Pass Preliminary Card.
It is unclear what prompted the argument but Nurmagomedov has long circled Lobov’s teammate Conor McGregor.
Nurmagomedov was originally supposed to fight fellow Lightweight contender Tony Ferguson in the main event, however, the latter withdrew from the fight due to a knee injury.
The undefeated Russian fighter said on Tuesday that he originally called for McGregor but that the Dubliner was not ready to fight.
“My first option when Tony’s out I say ‘hey, where’s Conor? Bring Conor. Is he champ? Bring this guy,” Nurmagomedov told TMZ Sports.
“He post message saying like ‘I’m staying ready bla bla bla’ but now when UFC call him he’s not ready… Dana told me about Conor ‘hey, now he have very good sponsorship with Burger King he have to look nice, we don’t want to change his face’ so I said ‘ok, now I understand’.”
McGregor is currently negotiating a return to the UFC where it is believed he is seeking an equity stake in the promotion as he seeks to become a partner with the promotion.
