Former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov was removed from a Frontier Airlines flight at Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport after a disagreement with airline staff over his seating. However, various athletes and organisations have criticised the airline calling it a blatant racial profiling.
A video of the incident, which Khabib called “unfair,” has since gone viral on social media.
In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, Nurmagomedov explained his side of the story.
“First of all, I need to clarify that it was @FlyFrontier, not AlaskaAir. The lady who approached me with questions was very rude from the start, even though I speak decent English, understood everything, and agreed to cooperate. Yet she still insisted on removing me from my seat,” he wrote.
The issue arose because Nurmagomedov, seated in an exit row, was questioned by a flight attendant about his ability to assist other passengers in an emergency—standard protocol for such seating. Despite expressing his willingness to comply, he claimed he was treated disrespectfully.
In a video recorded by a fellow passenger, a flight attendant is heard saying, “We cannot allow you to sit in the exit row… I am not going to do this back and forth. I’ll go call a supervisor. You can either take a different seat or we can go ahead and escort you off the plane.”
The 36-year-old fighter responded, “It’s not fair,” adding that he had complied fully during the onboarding process. “When I was in check-in, they asked me if I knew English, and I said yes. Then why are you doing this?”
Despite his protests, airline staff gave him the option to switch seats or leave the plane. After a brief exchange, security was called, and Nurmagomedov was escorted off the flight.
“After two minutes of conversation, she called security, and I was deplaned. After 1.5 hours, I boarded another airline and left for my destination. I did my best to stay calm and respectful, as you can see in the video. But those crew members could do better next time and just be nice to clients,” he added.
Nurmagomedov, widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history, retired with an undefeated record of 29-0. He was reportedly traveling to California to support his teammates ahead of UFC 311. The event, set to take place in Los Angeles, features two title fights involving his protege Islam Makhachev defending his lightweight title against Arman Tsarukyan and Umar Nurmagomedov challenging Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight championship.
In response to the statement given by the UFC champion, the Frontier Airline said, they are aware of the matter and investigation is underway.
