Dana White Won’t Temper Trash Talk In Potential Nurmagomedov vs. McGregor Rematch
There was a plethora of trash talk by McGregor in the build up to the bout, but that won’t change if the two meet again according to UFC President Dana White.
“Well my philosophy on this stuff is that this a fight,” said White on an ESPN Q&A. “Since the beginning of time people have said mean things to each other in a fight, no matter what. Muhammad Ali called Joe Frazier an Uncle Tom, back when that was one of the worst things you could say to a guy. He called him a gorilla; ‘it’s gonna be a thriller and a chiller when I get the gorilla in Manilla,’ and things like that. And for the rest of his life, [Frazier] hated Muhammad Ali, hated him for the things that he said about him. This is not the nice business, this is the fight business. This wasn’t the first time that mean things were said to another person and it won’t be the last.”
The trash talk quickly turned person during the lead up to UFC 229, with McGregor blasting Nurmagomedov’s religion, family and country.
White knows it could be awhile before the two meet again, since the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) has yet to punish McGregor and Nurmagomedov for their roles in the UFC 229 post-fight brawl.
“I don’t know if the immediate rematch happens because we got to see what the Nevada State Athletic Commission hands down in December when that hearing happens,” White said. “So I’m not even thinking about that, I’m thinking about possibilities in the future but, right now, not even worth thinking about until we find out what happens in Nevada.”
Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov has also previously stated that the only way Khabib would face McGregor again would be in the boxing ring, potentially nullifying any rematch in the Octagon.
