The rivalry between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov stays one of the crucial heated in UFC historical past. Their feud peaked with their combat at UFC 229 in 2018, which has left a long-lasting impression on the game and, based on UFC veteran Chael Sonnen, might have had a deeper impression on McGregor’s life.
Did Khabib Nurmagomedov give Conor McGregor PTSD and smash his life?
The unhealthy blood between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov started years earlier than their combat. Tensions escalated in 2018 when McGregor attacked a bus carrying Khabib and his workforce, resulting in authorized hassle for the Irish fighter. Their extremely anticipated conflict at UFC 229 grew to become the best-selling pay-per-view occasion in UFC historical past.
Within the combat, Khabib dominated McGregor together with his grappling and in the end submitted him within the fourth spherical. The drama didn’t finish there, as Khabib jumped out of the cage to confront McGregor’s workforce, sparking a chaotic post-fight brawl. Chael Sonnen, UFC veteran, asks:
“Did Khabib Nurmagomedov give Conor McGregor PTSD and ruin his life? Conor McGregor has lashed out in various ways at Khabib. The juxtaposition here, guys, is—however, however, however hot you want to be—Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, you’re going to attack a guy and threaten to bite off his testicles, right? I mean, that’s about as vicious of a line as there’s ever been.”
Chael Sonnen not too long ago shared his ideas on how this rivalry might need affected McGregor. He pointed to McGregor’s erratic conduct over time, together with late-night social media outbursts that always contain private assaults on Khabib and his household. These posts are ceaselessly deleted hours later, which Sonnen believes might level to deeper emotional struggles. Sonnen defined:
“And he’s gone out on a coke or booze binge, or whatever you call it, at 3:00 in the morning, woken up at 8:00 a.m., and deleted the things that he said—racial epithets, things about family. You’ve got to be real careful when you deal with culture.”
Sonnen additionally questioned why McGregor continues to lash out at Khabib regardless of there being no likelihood of a rematch. With Khabib retired from MMA, there’s no aggressive motive for the 2 to cross paths once more. Sonnen speculated that lingering trauma from their combat could be at play. He continued:
I’ve by no means seen Conor play earlier than when there wasn’t a payoff. There was no likelihood of these two touching one another in a aggressive one-on-one state of affairs. They won’t a lot as play horseshoes towards one another on this lifetime. So what’s all of it for?
Since shedding to Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor’s profession has been marked by ups and downs. Whereas he stays one among MMA’s greatest stars, accidents and inconsistent performances have slowed his momentum. Outdoors the Octagon, he has confronted authorized points and criticism for his conduct, together with allegations of substance abuse and confrontational actions.
In the meantime, Khabib has retired undefeated and shifted his focus to teaching and selling MMA occasions. The 2 fighters have taken very completely different paths since their notorious conflict. Sonnen concludes with:
“Unless there’s some post-traumatic stress that is left over—and it seems like it’s ruining Conor’s life.”