Khabib: McGregor should go to prison after bar attack
Khabib Nurmagomedov believes Conor McGregor needs to pay a heavy price for his latest violent altercation outside the Octagon.
CCTV footage surfaced on Thursday of the Irishman appearing to strike an older man in the face over an alleged dispute in April regarding McGregor's whiskey.
Khabib commented on the incident while talking to TMZ Sports, saying McGregor is "without his mind" and he should go to jail.
"It's crazy. All media stayed quiet; nobody posted about this. I can't imagine if I punched this guy how many media are gonna post it and talk about me," Khabib said. "This is like really, really bad thing. Like, even if this old guy on video punch your face 10 times, you can't punch this guy's face. You can't. This is like impossible. We have to respect all people. I don't understand."
"I think these people have to go jail, brother," he continued. "They have to go jail. This happened in Ireland? What happened about Ireland government? ... We guys from Russia have problem with visa, but why this bullshit guy don't have problem with visa in U.S.A? How U.S.A. can give him visa or something like this, respect or job? These people, they have to go jail."
McGregor hasn't fought in the UFC since losing to Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in Oct. 2018.
The bad blood between the two fighters and their respective camps dominated the run-up to the blockbuster bout, culminating in the lightweight champion leaping out of the cage to attack McGregor's team and inciting a post-fight brawl.
Khabib believes McGregor won't learn from his mistakes unless he faces consequences.
"This guy (McGregor) has no class, no respect. This is very bad for sport. Some things he's doing are good for sport, but right now, he without his mind. He lose his mind. It's crazy and government has to smash him."
UFC president Dana White has been a staunch defender of McGregor despite incidents like the Irishman vandalizing a bus prior to UFC 223, which injured several fighters on the card, and an altercation in March with a fan who was trying to snap the 31-year-old's photo.
While White said he's yet to speak with McGregor about the bar attack, he questioned when the prizefighter will get his act together.
"You get to a point where you look at a guy like Conor and you look at the bus incident in New York and all the others, like the camera, the phone, the guy took the picture of him in Miami and he slaps the phone - what's the number?” White told CBS Sports' Jim Rome on Thursday. "What's it going to cost Conor McGregor before he decides 'all right, this isn't worth it, enough is enough. I need to stop doing this.'"
- With h/t to MMA Fighting