Inoue explains: Khabib is not fighting for sport

Enson Inoue is one of the most interesting figures in the history of the sport. In 1,000 years, the thing most known about our sport may be that Igor Vov beat Enson into weeks in the hospital, and Enson grabbed the mic and apologized to the fans for not being stronger. There was never another moment like it.

Inoue appeared recently on MMAjunkie Radio and discussed the UFC 229 post-fight melee, in which lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov vaulted the Octagon and leaped on a notably mouthy member of Conor McGregor’s camp. He began with the fight itself.

I enjoyed it,” he began, as transcribed by MMAjunkie. “And then after he won, I kind of thought Conor deserved something after the way he trash-talked – it was a little overboard, Inoue recently told MMAjunkie Radio. So when Khabib kind of pushed on his head, I thought, ‘Perfect!’

Then he jumps out of the octagon, I was like, ‘Oh, no,.’

You will never find a more serious fighter than Enson Inoue. People say things like “Death Before Dishonor.” Enson Inoue lives Yamato Damashi, the soul of old Japan. In his way, Nurmagomedov does too.

Someone like Khabib is not fighting for sport, explained Inoue. He’s more of a martial artist, so I think he takes a lot of the emotions a little deeper. Already, just without any controversy, any rivalry in the ring, when you’re fighting and you live through it and you defeat your opponent – hand-to-hand combat, man-to-man against another man – it already creates a lot of emotions.

Some people are super quiet, and then will scream out because the emotions are hard to control at that moment. But with the rivalry and him insulting his religion and his father, I think it probably got the best of him.

Got the best of Conor McGregor, too.