Zubaira Tukhugov has admitted to his role in the UFC 229 incident that involved Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov this past weekend in Las Vegas.
In a video posted on social media, Tukhugov mentions slapping McGregor “as promised” after all the pre-fight talk involving the former champion and the current titleholder. He was expected to face Artem Lobov, a teammate of McGregor’s later this month.
UFC fighter Zubaira Tukhugov is bragging on social media about attacking Conor McGregor at #UFC229: “I slapped him as promised. I promised to make him answer for his words and I did." pic.twitter.com/Iy2QYlUmEt
— Karim Zidan (@ZidanSports) October 7, 2018
Karim Zidan, a journalist who has worked for ESPN, Deadspin and other sites, translated part of the message from the now-former UFC fighter.
“I slapped him as promised,” Tukhugov said. “I promised to make him answer for his words and I did.”
Moments after Nurmagomedov scored a submission victory in the fourth round over McGregor, the UFC champion became engaged in a shouting match with Dillon Danis. While Nurmagomedov was in the crowd attacking Danis and other members of McGregor fight team, teammates of Nurmagomedov had stormed the Octagon to attack McGregor.