Nurmagomedov was removed from a flight to Los Angeles after refusing to leave his seat in the emergency exit row. Some users on social media believe the incident was racially motivated.
Was Khabib Nurmagomedov’s removal from a Las Vegas to Los Angeles flight a misunderstanding or were there racist elements to the incident?
That’s the debate that’s going around online in places like Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter), where Nurmagomedov fans are accusing Alaska Airlines employees of tossing the UFC great from the flight because he’s Muslim.
Footage of Nurmagomedov being asked to leave the plane after refusing to give up his seat in the emergency aisle showed up early this morning (Sun. Jan. 12th). In it, you can hear Khabib arguing with an employee over whether he should have to switch seats.
Khabib removed from a plane? It seems even one of the most famous Muslims in the world couldn’t escape racial profiling in America. It doesn’t matter what “status” you have.@AlaskaAir this is complete garbage. pic.twitter.com/o6XB3KMi77
— Dr. Omar Suleiman (@omarsuleiman) January 12, 2025
“It’s not fair,” Khabib says.
“It is fair,” the employee responds. “But it’s also off of [the flight attendant’s] judgment. I’m not going to do this back and forth. I’m going to call a supervisor, you can change your seat or we can go ahead and escort you off the plane.”
Nurmagomedov would be taken off the plane, leading some on social media to say he was unfairly treated.
“Khabib removed from a plane?” one X user tweeted. “It seems even one of the most famous Muslims in the world couldn’t escape racial profiling in America. It doesn’t matter what “status” you have. F**k Alaska Air.”
“Let me guess this straight: Khabib was assigned the seat that helps the passengers incase of an emergency, which he agreed to do,” another user tweeted. “BUT some random female passenger complained he didn’t speak enough English to do this job? And they kicked him off?”
“Some Karens were uncomfortable with a Russian Muslim man with a beard sitting at the emergency exit door,” one wrote on YouTube.
“Khabib eventually understood the request and obliged, but they had already profiled him smh,” an X user posted. “I’ve seen an Italian with worse English than Khabib sit in the emergency and nobody minded.”
It’s impossible for us to know exactly what happened based on a boiled down clip of the incident, but initial reports had the flight attendant asking Nurmagomedov whether he was willing and capable of assisting flight crew with the emergency exit. He reportedly didn’t understand what they asked him, which seems a bit sus but okay.
If the flight attendant is concerned the passenger in the emergency exit row isn’t going to understand them in an emergency, they’re going to turf them out of that seat. With all the Boeing incidents these days, they’re not looking to take chances when it comes to having someone unresponsive in the emergency row.
What do you think, Maniacs? Was Khabib treated unfairly? Sound off in the comments below!