What if Khabib Nurmagomedov were not called ‘The Eagle’? It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? After all, that name is now the brand of the undefeated Russian star. However, did you know that he was against adopting the moniker at first?

While it’s undeniable how entertaining the promotion is, some of their decisions don’t sit well with the public, nor the fighters within it. Former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of those fighters who has taken issue with how the promotion handles business. He recently appeared in an interview with World Sports Summit at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. While there, the 37-year-old aired his frustration with the UFC, going as far as to reveal how the promotion pressured him to adopt a nickname when he first joined. 

Khabib Nurmagomedov reveals what the UFC wants

While discussing the politics within MMA promotions in the United States, Khabib Nurmagomedov made it clear that he is not a fan of how things operate, urging promotions to be fairer. He pointed out how Dagestani fighters in the UFC rarely lose, yet the promotion often hesitates to extend their contracts, stressing that somebody has to talk about this.

For Khabib, the current state of the promotion reminded him of his own early days in the UFC. “This is what I don’t like. Because I remember myself in 2012, when they just signed me, they told me, ‘My friend, it’s very hard to say your name, you need a nickname,’” Khabib recalled. “I’m like, ‘What? I have my name, why do I need a nickname?’ And even I asked my manager, ‘What is this nickname? What do you mean nickname?’”

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After realizing the issue, he was effectively pushed to adopt ‘The Eagle’ as his nickname—a decision he accepted “because it’s a symbol of Dagestan.” Still, Khabib noted that the nickname may not have been necessary, because “after six years, everybody knows my name.” While it can be argued that the UFC played a significant role in building his global profile, Khabib believes the promotion prioritizes the wrong traits.

“They need somebody who [talks], who drinks, who shows up, all this stuff,” Khabib said during the interview. “They want these kinds of fighters. [At] the end of the day, this is a sport, best vs. best. Not like the best dancer or who has the best haircut, or who has [the most] followers.” While acknowledging that fans want entertainment, Khabib maintained that the politics behind delivering it often make the competition unfair.

But the bigger question remains: is Khabib right in his criticism of the UFC?

UFC cut several fighters who didn’t deserve it

There’s no denying that fans want to watch action-packed fights, not necessarily 25 minutes of grappling on the canvas. And this has pushed the promotion to hype up fighters who can deliver more than just utter dominance on the mat. But they have also discontinued working with several fighters, whose fighting style didn’t sit well with them. 

The UFC didn’t re-sign 25-2-1 Rinat Fakhretdinov, who was undefeated in the promotion. Not to mention, he was coming off a 54-second TKO win over Andreas Gustafsson in September this year. This isn’t even the only occasion UFC has pulled a stunt like this. Other examples include Martin Buday, who had just one loss, and Muhammad Mokaev, who is not just undefeated but was also close to a title shot. 

Clearly, Khabib Nurmagomedov has a valid point about the politics in the UFC. However, ‘The Eagle’ may not have been in the position he is in today without the UFC, and especially his fight against Conor McGregor, who is everything the UFC wants. What do you make of Khabib’s claims?