UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov shared a poignant moment of respect with beaten opponent Dustin Poirier as the pair donned T-shirts bearing each other's names after their title unification fight in Abu Dhabi.
Nurmagomedov submitted interim champ Poirier in the third round of their lightweight title unifier on Saturday night to extend his unbeaten record to 28-0.
Also on rt.com Khabib vaults cage again to celebrate submitting Poirier to become undisputed champ at UFC 242And in contrast to the scenes that marred his victory over Conor McGregor in Las Vegas 11 months ago, Nurmagomedov and Poirier this time showed there was nothing but respect between the pair after the bout.
That extended to the fighters donning T-shirts bearing each other’s names for their post-fight interviews, during which Khabib said he would auction the item he was wearing, with the proceeds going to Poirier’s ‘Good Fight’ Foundation.
Nurmagomedov submitted Poirier with a rear-naked choke in the third round of the bout at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
The Russian dominated the early stages before appearing briefly rocked by Poirier in the second round, then escaping an attempted Poirier submission to force the American to tap out in the same fashion McGregor did almost a year ago.