'Hell to pay': Russian President Vladimir Putin on UFC chaos

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, meets with Khabib Nurmagomedov, right, who has won the UFC lightweight title, in Ulyanovsk on the Volga River, Russia. Photo / AP

Barely an hour after submitting Conor McGregor and sparking the wildest post-fight UFC brawl ever seen, Khabib Nurmagomedov made an interesting claim.

He said he'd already been on the phone to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who reportedly congratulated him immediately after he gave the promotion an international black eye.

The pair have now met face-to-face for the first time since the weekend's madness in an interview on Russian TV.

Throwing out the signature hoodie, a suited-up Khabib sat with his father and was showered with praise by his President for his "worthy and convincing" triumph over the Irishman.

The 66-year-old politician sympathised with Khabib's explosive reaction after claiming victory, which saw him launch a fly kick at McGregor's training partner Dillon Danis.

"Anyone could have jumped (from the Octagon) in the same way," Putin said of Khabib's brain snap.

"If we are attacked from the outside, not only you, we could all jump in such a way … there could be hell to pay. But it's better not to reach that stage."

Khabib's meeting with Putin followed his glorious homecoming, which saw over 10,000 people swarm a football stadium to watch him give a speech after landing in Russia.

It came a day after the lightweight champion walked almost unnoticed through Las Vegas airport on his way to board his flight.

McGregor tried getting inside Khabib's head months before their blockbuster meeting in October, snagging a picture with Putin while attending the World Cup in June.

"Today I was invited to the World Cup final as a guest of Russian President Vladimir Putin," he posted to Instagram.

"This man is one of the greatest leaders of our time and I was honoured to attend such a landmark event alongside him."

The pair are facing a ban from the Octagon after the post-fight scuffle stained what was tipped to be the biggest night in the promotion's history.

McGregor was told by fight doctors to steer clear of any contact until October 28 after being schooled by Khabib.

THE KNIVES ARE OUT IN IRELAND

Fiery Conor McGregor supporters were out in droves after Ireland's golden child copped a sucker punch from a teammate of Khabib's in the post fight chaos.

The Irish Sun ran an op-ed piece slamming Dana White's UFC, labelling the event a "steaming pile of manure".

The Herald slammed the "disgusting" scenes and labelled the Russian camp the "Brawls Boys" on its front page.

The Irish Daily Mirror was perhaps the most daring, running a huge front page spread of Abubaker Nurmagomedov's quote smearing the nation: 'Conor's an Irish bitch'. The back page rounded it off by labelling the situation "Notoriously Bad".

They sure do care about Conor in the north.