Paul Hughes has responded to Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s invitation to visit Dagestan. The Irishman recently faced Khabib’s cousin, Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, in a thrilling title bout this past Saturday at PFL Road to Dubai PPV, narrowly losing via a razor-close majority decision.

After the fight, Khabib invited the Irishman along with his “team and family” to come and visit Dagestan as his guest “any time”. And Hughes has accepted the invite, but with just one (very understandable) condition- he wants a rematch with Usman first.

“Thankyou @TeamKhabib I have great respect for you, your team, and your nation. I would be honored to take you up on this offer someday and then return the favor in Ireland☘️ But please, only after I get to rematch Usman,” Hughes wrote in reply to Khabib’s X post inviting him to the Russian province.

The Paul Hughes-Usman Nurmagomedov fight was officially marketed as ‘Dagestan vs. Ireland 2’ by Bellator. This, of course, was an attempt to cash in on the popularity of Khabib’s famous UFC 229 mega-fight against Conor McGregor, who is Irish. And in the run-up to the Usman-Hughes fight, ‘The Eagle’ had claimed that the Irish MMA scene was far behind that of his native Dagestan.

As a proud Irishman, Hughes couldn’t help but respond. The Bellator star had taken shots at Usman’s recent failed drug test, which meant that there was a fair bit of animosity between his and Usman’s camp going into their fight. But with their Bellator title clash done and dusted with, it seems that Khabib wants to squash the beef, and Hughes also seems willing. But there is perhaps another, more important reason Khabib wants to mend fences with Hughes.

Khabib Nurmagomedov profusely praises Ireland after Usman Nurmagomedov-Paul Hughes fight

Khabib Nurmagomedov’s comments comparing Ireland and Dagestan’s fight scene, of course, did not go down well with the famously passionate Irish fans. And the former UFC star seemingly wants to mend fences not just with Hughes in particular, but Ireland in general. In fact, the Dagestani MMA legend had nothing but good things to say about Ireland after Hughes’s fight with Usman, going as far as to say that he loved the country and its people. Why? Well because of the European country’s consistent and steadfast support for the Palestinian cause.

“With all the things between me and [Conor McGregor] when we were fighting, don’t forget, Ireland is the biggest supporter in the world for Palestine. Don’t forget about this. We love you guys! You, your government, everybody,” Khabib said after Usman beat Hughes.

Republic of Ireland (not to be confused with Northern Ireland), has a long and honorable tradition of taking anti-colonial stances. After all, the country sees itself as a victim of historic British colonialism, and since it sees the Israel-Palestine issue from an anti-colonial lens, Ireland has indeed been one of the strongest supporters of the Palestinian cause.

Khabib, of course, is a devout Muslim and supports his Muslim brethren in the Middle East. This is why it is not surprising to see ‘The Eagle’ put away his recent drama with the Irish fans and commend Ireland on its stance. Some things, after all, are bigger than petty personal squabbles. What do you think about Paul Hughes’ reply to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s invitation?