Azamat Bostanov recalls Khabib's welcoming demeanor after UFC 223 title win

Azamat Bostanov, now a fighter manager, shared his memories of covering Khabib Nurmagomedov's UFC 223 title victory in Brooklyn eight years ago. Bostanov recounted interviewing Artem Lobov after the famous confrontation with Khabib, which initially led manager Ali Abdelaziz to tell him to stay away from their team. However, Khabib intervened, putting his arm around Bostanov and telling Abdelaziz he was one of their own just doing his job. Bostanov described 20-30 Dagestanis gathering at the hotel ready to prevent any provocations from Conor McGregor's team. He also revealed that Zabit broke two fingers during his warm-up at the same event but chose not to report it to avoid being pulled from the fight. After the event, despite being exhausted, Khabib took time to photograph with fans, talk to strangers on video calls, and remained accessible and friendly in subsequent years, even once offering Bostanov a ride when spotting him on the street.