Khabib leaves presser "the perfect counter shot" to McGregor

LAS VEGAS – UFC President Dana White has no objection to Khabib Nurmagomedov leaving today's UFC 229 press conference before Conor McGregor arrives. In fact, he thinks it was a smart move from the lightweight champion.

One of the most important stories of the day on Saturday will be whether McGregor (21-3 MMA, 9-1 UFC) managed to get into Nurmagomedov's head (26-0 MMA, 10-0 UFC) as he had so many other previous opponents. Prior to today, White had stated that he was confident that "The Notorious" had succeeded in this venture.

White said Nurmagomedov's response forced the press conference to start at 3 pm The patient's departure time, which was then leaving after 15 minutes, was a stroke of genius.

"If you really look at what happened in New York (at the press conference), I think Conor McGregor absolutely had a head to the head, had the head of his director, shook and shook all of New York, "White told ESPN's" SportsCenter "at the conclusion of the press conference. "I thought that today was Khabib's perfect counter-stroke. Khabib went at 3 pm and said, "I am a professional, I am here, I am here to answer questions, and then I will leave." I thought it was perfectly played by Khabib. . "

UFC 229 is taking place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card is broadcast a la carte after the preliminary matches of FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Although the world was deprived of a traditional confrontation at the press conference between Nurmagomedov and McGregor, White said it was not particularly bothering him. The risk of all sorts of shenanigans likely to put the fight at risk was removed from the table, which adds even more intrigue to the last confrontation between the champion and the challenger following Friday's ceremonial weigh-in.

White explained that the actions of Nurmagomedov and McGregor were just one more element of the wild construction of UFC 229. Discussions are now over. White said he was eager to see the fighters gather one last time after crossing the ladder. make the fight official.

"It was a bit weird and a little odd for us to hold the press conference today," White said. "But you must remember that these are all games of mind that lead to tomorrow. Both guys have to reduce their weight tonight, and the real day is tomorrow at weigh-in. "

For more information on UFC 229, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.