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Khabib Nurmagomedov Defends His NFT Launch After Conor McGregor's Criticism
Last Updated: November 27, 2025
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Key Takeaways
- McGregor accused Khabib of exploiting Dagestani culture and his father’s legacy through a paid NFT collection;
- Khabib defended the NFTs as cultural “papakha” gifts celebrating Dagestan’s traditions, not a speculative scheme;
- Analyst ZachXBT recalled McGregor’s failed crypto project, REAL, that raised only 39% of its $1 million goal.
On November 26, Conor McGregor criticized Khabib Nurmagomedov's non-fungible token (NFT) launch, which featured versions of the Dagestani "papakha" hat.
McGregor accused Nurmagomedov of using cultural heritage and his late father's image to profit from digital collectibles.
He claimed that after the paid drop was promoted through Telegram, all related content was erased.
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Nurmagomedov dismissed McGregor's remarks, describing the NFT collection as a positive tribute and a digital collectible with community value rather than a speculative asset. He added:
Gifts in the shape of Papakha, a hat that symbolizes the traditions and culture of the Dagestan people. Traditions and culture that are slowly walking over this world, whether you like it or not!
After McGregor's comments went viral, blockchain analyst ZachXBT highlighted a similar pattern in McGregor's crypto history.
He stated in a post on X, "There is just no way good guy McGregor used his reputation, as well as Irish culture, to scam his fans and fire sell a bunch of digital tokens online and then delete all of the posts after they were sold, leaving his fans robbed of their money?"
In April, McGregor's celebrity-endorsed cryptocurrency, REAL, failed to meet expectations.
The project, distributed through a sealed-bid auction that also promoted staking, achieved only about 39% of its intended goal before eventually being canceled and refunded to participants.
Meanwhile, Coinbase recently spent $25 million to buy and burn an NFT that triggers the return of the UpOnly crypto podcast. What did Jordan Fish, one of the original hosts, say? Read the full story.
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