Retired UFC Lightweight kingpin Khabib Nurmagomedov’s year has been a complicated one. Though his athletes continue to find unprecedented success around the globe, Nurmagomedov was dealt a substantial blow by the Russian government, which froze his bank accounts and seized his collection of luxury cars over a unpaid tax bill totaling $3.4 million.
Conor McGregor, naturally, took great joy in his former opponent’s suffering. Regardless, Nurmagomedov paid off the bill just about a week ago, so there will be no need for a UFC comeback or quick boxing match in Riyadh.
Perhaps there’s more to the story? In a recent interview, top-ranked Bellator contender Alexandr Shabliy — who is scheduled to face Bellator Lightweight champion and Khabib trainee Usman Nurmagomedov on Sept. 7 — weighed in on the real reason behind Khabib’s tax issues. The Russian clearly picked his words carefully, but he explained that political disagreements were the root cause of Khabib’s frozen accounts and assets seizure.
“In general, this situation is connected with the fact that it wasn’t just that it turned out that Khabib had some unpaid taxes. This is a situation of counterbalance between the country and Khabib. Khabib did not support the political decisions of the state, and in response, the state — as in response to many bloggers who pursued opposition policies and did not support the government’s position — took such measures. I think that it is no secret that our state has a tough policy and controls the resources that it has.”
What political disagreements? Khabib may be buddy-buddy with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but “The Eagle” has also spoken out against the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In fact, he specifically asked former US President Donald Trump to stop the bloodshed when the two met at a UFC event. Of course, Shabliy didn’t name the war specifically, but it’s hard to imagine a different political disagreement causing the retired champion so many problems.
Even for MMA legends, Russian politics can be a dangerous scene.