Watch: When Khabib Nurmagomedov accused Conor McGregor of taking drugs ahead of UFC 229
The rivalry between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov is a matter of MMA lore now.
Conor McGregor is a master at creating rivalries, which in turn sell pay-per-views. But no other fighter managed to stay in his orbit for as long as Khabib Nurmagomedov did.
While their rivalry had been brewing for quite some time, it reached new heights when Conor McGregor and his team hurled a hand truck at a bus in which Khabib Nurmagomedov was seated along with other UFC fighters.
The assault took place at the Barclays Center ahead of UFC 223, where Khabib Nurmagomedov was to challenge Al Iaquinta for the lightweight belt that the Irishman once held.
The attack broke a window and injured a couple of other fighters who were present inside the bus, including Michael Chiesa, whose injuries led to his removal from the UFC 223 card. Chiesa went ahead and sued Conor McGregor for the assault, to which 'The Notorious' pleaded guilty.
Their ongoing feud ultimately culminated in a lightweight title bout at UFC 229, where Conor McGregor suffered a fourth-round submission loss - a defeat that probably still haunts the Irishman to this day.
Khabib Nurmagomedov- "He [Conor McGregor] look like a drunk guy"
In an interview with ESPN's Brett Okamoto ahead of their historic UFC 229, Khabib Nurmagomedov addressed the matter.
When asked if the bus incident still bothered him ahead of the fight, Khabib Nurmagomedov said:
"A little bit, a little bit. But I can control my emotion, you know? He can say whatever he want."
'The Eagle' went on to suggest that Conor McGregor uses drugs and is addicted to alcohol, which would eventually affect his performance inside the octagon. Nurmagomedov said:
"Of course, I am gonna try to smash him, you know, if I have the chance. I am confident. You know, when I watch his eyes, I don't feel nothing. He's like drunk guy. I feel like his face is like... he's nervous, he's drunk, and a little bit white, you know. It's like, he look like a drunk guy. It's like crazy. It's very interesting how he want to fight, when you use lot of drugs, when you use whiskey, how you wanna fight 25 minutes?"
Watch the interview below: