UFC: Vladimir Putin said there was "hell to pay" after Nurmagomedov's 2018 brawl with McGregor

Following his 2018 victory over the ever-controversial Conor McGrergor, Khabib Nurmagomedov jumped out of the octagon and got into a fight with one of McGregor's trainers, while several other men, believed to be members of Nurmagomedov's team, attacked McGregor in the ring.

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Nurmagomedov on his victory, but urged him to keep in mind that "there are moral rules to respect." However, he added that "anyone could have jumped out of the octagon the same way. If we get attacked from the outside, we could all jump like that. When someone provokes us there will be hell to pay."

Although the Russian president also said that "it is better not to reach that stage"

How Putin received him in Russia

Khabib went to visit the president in the company of his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, where he published an image of the meeting. "I will ask your father not to punish you very severely," Vladimir Putin joked with his eyes on the fighter's father, present with his son in Oulianovsk (Volga) where the Russian president is participating in a meeting dedicated to the success of the Russian athletes.

"You fulfilled the main mission: to win with dignity and convincingly," added the Russian president, who stated that he hopes that "sport is above all else and that you have good words broadcast on Russian television.

Putin holds sports on very high regard, so the current blowback from the world's sports community has certainly had a toll on the Russian leader. All Russian teams have been banned from sporting events, as well as the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Last week, UEFA had shifted the venue for this summer's Champions League final from St. Petersburg to Paris. Russian teams were already serving a two-year ban from global competitions for the doping scandal first reported at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

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