‘Everything is fine’: Bellator fighter Usman Nurmagomedov detained in Moscow after police officer hit by car
Bellator MMA fighter Usman Nurmagomedov – cousin of UFC icon Khabib – has been detained in Moscow after a car he was traveling in hit a police officer, according to reports.
Nurmagomedov and a friend were held at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport on Thursday, TASS confirmed.
The pair are said to have been in a Toyota Camry which struck a police officer at a checkpoint while they were traveling to an airport near Kaspiysk in Dagestan.
From there, they flew to the Russian capital, where officers were waiting for them on their arrival.
The Baza telegram channel shared an image of a police document which requested that Nurmagomedov and his friend, Kamal Idrisov, be detained.
The officer affected is said to have received moderate bruising, and a purported clip of the incident was published on numerous Russian websites.
Момент наезда на полицейского в Дагестане (смотрите на дальнюю от камеры полосу). В машине, зацепившей сотрудника, предположительно и находился Усман Нурмагомедов.
— Телеканал 360° (@360tv) November 11, 2021
По данным СМИ, у пострадавшего диагностирована подкожная гематома головы и ушибы теменной области. pic.twitter.com/WmedFx1UcZ
Around the time that reports of Nurmagomedov's detention first emerged, pictures were shared on the fighter's Instagram account in which he appeared to respond to the claims.
“I don’t know who’s writing what, but please, calm down already. I’ve already been bombarded with text messages, everything’s fine," Nurmagomedov wrote in one post as he appeared alongside family member and fellow MMA fighter Umar Nurmagomedov.
According to reports, the images are old and Nurmagomedov and Idrisov will initially be detained for a 48-hour period. The pair will also be transported back to Dagestan for the investigation.
Undefeated lightweight fighter Nurmagomedov was last in action at Bellator 269 in Moscow in October, when he earned a routine first-round submission victory over Finland’s Patrik Pietila.
Nurmagomedov, 23, boasts a 14-0 professional MMA record and has been tipped to follow in the footsteps of his famous cousin Khabib.
The former UFC lightweight champion is part of Usman’s coaching team and helped oversee his most recent victory in Moscow last month.