When Khabib Nurmagomedov honored Dustin Poirier and took jibe at Conor McGregor: “MMA's not about trash talking”

Khabib Nurmagomedov once famously took a jibe at former foe Conor McGregor while also heaping praise on Dustin Poirier. The buildup for both bouts were completely different as the Irishman took a more personal approach as opposed to the Louisiana native's respectful approach.

Nurmagomedov fought Poirier at UFC 242 in 2019, which was his first bout after serving his suspension for involvement in the post-fight brawl with 'The Notorious' and his team. There were no heated arguments or personal jibes taken towards their families at the pre-fight press conference and the two lightweights had cordial interactions.

'The Eagle' went on to submit 'The Diamond' via rear-naked choke in the third round to successfully retain his lightweight championship. During his post-fight interview, Nurmagomedov honored Poirier by wearing his t-shirt and mentioned that the fighters need to follow their example and set a higher standard of respect. He said:

"We show really what it is MMA. Number one, I think it's respect. When you come [to the] gym, first thing what your coach, everybody teach you...'You have to respect gym, you have to respect teammates, coaches, you have to still clean your gym'. Everything about respect. MMA is not about trash talking. You know, this is what we show with Dustin Poirier and his great team." [2:18 - 2:45]

Check out Khabib Nurmagomedov's full post-fight interview below:

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How else did Khabib Nurmagomedov honor Dustin Poirier at UFC 242?

Khabib Nurmagomedov held Dustin Poirier in high regard as there was a great deal of respect shared between them ahead of their lightweight title fight at UFC 242.

Although 'The Eagle' was confident in his abilities, their exchanges at pre-fight press conference didn't get out of hand like it did when he fought Conor McGregor at UFC 229.

During the aforementioned post-fight interview, Nurmagomedov announced that he was going to make a generous donation to Poirier's charity. He said:

"Why I wear this [Poirier] t-shirt? I know Dustin do a lot of charity stuff. Guys, I'm gonna sell this t-shirt. All this money I'm gonna send [to] Dustin Poirier. This is what I want." [1:49 - 2:02]

Check out the tweet regarding the sale of Khabib Nurmagomedov's worn Dustin Poirier t-shirt below:

Tweet regarding the sale of Nurmagomedov's worn Poirier t-shirt [Image courtesy: @RTSportNews - X]