UFC Forced To Tweak Bout Lineup To Avoid Another McGregor-Khabib Fiasco

KEY POINTS

UFC is making every effort to avoid another unnecessary scuffle involving the camps of Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov
The fight of Nurmagomedov's cousin has to be moved to an earlier date
Nurmagomedov's team is feeling at home on Yas Island

All eyes are on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi as Conor McGregor returns to the Octagon to square off with Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 257 on Saturday.

But before mixed martial arts fans witness the much-awaited comeback of "The Notorious" this weekend, the promotion is set to hold UFC on ESPN 20 that features lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov's cousin, Umar, who competes on the undercard of the said event against Sergey Morozov in a three-round bantamweight encounter.

With the heated rivalry between McGregor and Nurmagomedov, the UFC had to do certain adjustments to avoid a possible conflict after what went down between both camps in 2018.

Umar was supposed to be slated to compete at the aforementioned pay-per-view event on Saturday, but matchmakers were compelled to reschedule his promotional debut and booked him for UFC on ESPN 20.

The Russian fighter went on record about the switch in an interview with Sport24.

“Ali Abdelaziz told me that the fight was postponed. I said that it makes no difference to me. The main thing is to fight. Most likely, this was done so that we do not intersect with Conor McGregor here, and at the tournament too. They have such a policy that they don't want us to see each other. Anything can happen,” Umar told the outlet, as quoted on Sportskeeda.

“I don’t even know what would happen if I met Conor in the lobby... Definitely, everything would not have ended well if our teams were in the same room. A person does not stop talking nonsense, insults and offends the honor of others," he added. "In this regard, he needs to change. Any fight can be promoted, but without affecting the honor and dignity of the opponent."

Although McGregor and the Irishman's team are in the same vicinity, Umar and his prominent relative are making themselves at home on Yas Island. The 24-year-old hopes to experience the same kind of accommodation when he fights again under the UFC banner.

“This is almost like our house. We feel the same here how we feel in Dagestan. We are always feeling very comfortable here. Yes, I like this place. I like that UFC is coming here and I will fight here 100 times if I can,” he told Gulf News.