UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov has snapped back at lightweight standout Bobby Green after ‘King’ accused him and his protege, Islam Makhachev, of ducking USADA testing.
On October 7, Green is scheduled for a main event clash with No. 10 ranked contender Grant Dawson in the UFC Vegas 80 main event. Ahead of his return to the Octagon, Green appeared on the JAXXON podcast with MMA legend Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and proceeded to levy accusations against Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev, claiming that the pair had regularly attempted to skirt USADA testing protocols during their respective rises to the top of the division.
“Khabib and Islam, they go to a mosque, you know? They train at some place where they can’t be, you can’t go to, USADA can’t come in here. For months, they can do whatever they wanna do,” Green claimed.
Bobby Green doubles down on believing that Russian fighters are cheating via JAXXON podcast pic.twitter.com/xQPLHe2xq2
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) October 5, 2023
Khabib Responds to Bobby Green’s Accusations
Getting wind of Green’s comments, ‘The Eagle’ responded via his Instagram stories, reminding ‘King’ of their immense experience and the number of times they were tested by USADA throughout their individual careers.
“There’s nothing wrong with giving power to a champion, whether you like it or not,” Khabib wrote. “But it is not given to everyone, for this you need brains and preferably not from straw. @islam_makhachev You can’t give them a break. And tell him that I have about 300 amateur fights in different sports, Islam has been playing amateur (kick) sports also since 9 years old and has vast experience behind him. I am not talking about experience in professionals anymore.
“I took the doping test 49 times in 5 years. Islam is about to have 50 tests, someone tell Bobby what Islam did to him was pure machinery used for years.”
Islam Makhachev and Bobby Green squared off against one another in a 2022 Fight Night headliner with the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ handily defeating Green via ground and pound in the opening round.
The win earned Makhachev his first shot at UFC gold against former champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 280 last year. Makhachev captured the lightweight title with a second-round submission over the promotion’s most prolific finisher.
A year removed from their first meeting, Makhachev and Oliveira will run it back at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi on October 21.
