Fedor Emelianenko, the Russian MMA fighter nicknamed 'The Last Emperor', has spoken out about the infamous 6 October Khabib-Conor super bout, which was marred by a massive cage-side brawl.
When pressed on his opinion on the two fighters, Emelianenko scolded McGregor for his braggado. "Personally, I don't like what McGregor is doing. He needs to watch his mouth," he told reporters.
The 42-year-old athlete, who is considered to be one of MMA's greatest, confessed that he did not know Khabib well but described him as a "cultured, positive fighter".
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Emelianenko added that the post-match brawl between Khabib's camp and Conor's left a "heavy impression" on him. Seconds after defeating McGregor in round 4, Nurmagomedov leapt out of the Octagon into the crowd to attack his rival's jiu-jitsu coach, Dillon Danis, allegedly for the insulting remarks the latter made during the fight.
"A professional should remain a professional, and not vent their emotions outside the cage," Emelianenko said of Khabib's actions, saying that he should have used the chance to "take the microphone" and told McGregor "where he belongs".
The two are expected to attend a hearing of the Nevada State Athletic Commission on 29 January to learn the severity of their punishment. Khabib said he could face a one-year ban from fighting.
Emelianenko (38-5) is set to face current light heavyweight champ Ryan Bader (26-5) at Bellator 214 in California on Saturday at 9:00 p.m. (ET).
'The Last Emperor', who has held a 28-fight unbeaten streak between 2000 and 2010, said he is thinking about retiring because of his age and all the injuries related to MMA which take him more time to recover from.