TKO

UFC Superstar Clashes With Frontier Airlines Staff and Is Booted From Plane

Khabib Nurmagomedov and his traveling companions were escorted from the Las Vegas-San Francisco flight after a seat disagreement.

Retired UFC hall-of-famer—and Trump pal—Khabib Nurmagomedov was booted from a Frontier Airlines plane after getting into a disagreement with staff. The 36-year-old, who hung up the gloves in 2021, took to social media to cry foul after a clip of the incident went viral online. “Lady who [came] to me with questions was very rude from the very beginning, even though I speak very decent English and can understand everything and agreed to assist, she still insists on removing me from my seat,” the Muslim ex-fighter wrote. “What was the base for that, racial, national or other one, I’m not sure.” The airline replied to the post, saying: “We are aware of the incident and are investigating.” The disagreement seems to have arisen from the Russian fighter’s ability to speak English and his position in a seat on an emergency exit row. The airline told the Daily Beast that Nurmagomedov was uncompliant, saying: “Mr. Nurmagomedov did not respond, despite repeated attempts, which placed him in non-compliance with FAA requirements.” It added that moving him was “in no way related to his ethnicity.” The airline was slated by UFC fans after posting an ill-timed Instagram photo of smiling staff.