Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the most influential and famous Muslim athletes on the planet. He may rival only Liverpool star forward Mo Salah for his reach and influence in the Muslim world.
However, a recent social media post saw Khabib admitting, in public, that his ultra-conservative religious worldview comes in direct conflict with his chosen career.
“The Almighty Won’t Approve”: Khabib’s Conflict With “Haram” Prizefighting
Khabib recently took to social media to post the following: “The only thing you will never achieve is the satisfaction of people. The priority in all matters and undertakings must be the satisfaction of the Almighty.”
One comment asked: “Do you think that the Almighty is satisfied with you? Taking part in haram (forbidden) fights for money?”
To which Khabib replied: “I don’t think so.” Under one interpretation of Islamic law, anything that brings harm to the body must be avoided as “haram” or forbidden.
In particular, strikes to the face are considered especially heinous. Khabib, however, disagreed, when he got the chance to take on Conor McGregor:
“I enjoyed this, when I punched his face. This is a very good feeling, believe me.” Khabib, who amassed an impressive 29-0 record during his time as a professional fighter, used his increased public profile to promote and enforce his ultra-conservative worldview:
“If I fight and I become famous, now I can talk to people more. I can say, ‘Do this, this and this,’ because a lot of people are watching. I want to be a good example, a good role model. You have to be [a champion] outside the cage too. This is my goal.”
Apparently, his role modeling extended to his wholehearted support of Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov. Kadyrov has long come under international scrutiny for his despotic regime, including widespread torture and forced disappearances, restricting women’s rights, and anti-LGBT purges. No word yet from Khabib as to the Almighty’s approval of state-sanctioned mass murder and torture.
Which brings us to the UFC’s longstanding and highly lucrative association with Abu Dhabi. Khabib’s rise in the UFC brought the sport to the attention of the international Muslim community. Now, Khabib’s own heir apparent, Islam Makhachev, is the lightweight champion.
MMA is big business in Abu Dhabi, with Makhachev set to headline UFC 294 in the Emirati capital. Abu Dhabi’s own human rights record is heavily criticised, but it seems that even the Emirates’ theocratic monarch is willing to look past the contentious nature of prizefighting.
The Middle East’s sportswashing program is in full swing, from the FIFA World Cup in Qatar to the various oligarch-owned franchises around the world. How the Muslim world will react to its extension to a sport as inherently brutal as mixed martial arts remains to be seen.
