"A man of integrity and wise words" - When Khabib Nurmagomedov's reason for not wearing the Russian flag won over the Internet

Khabib Nurmagomedov was once asked at UFC Moscow why he does not wear the Russian flag during fights, and his answer simultaneously surprised and won over many fans.

During the press conference of a UFC Fight Night event in Moscow, Russia headlined by Zabit Magomedsharipov and Calvin Kattar, Nurmagomedov was asked why he does not wear the country's flag. In his response, Nurmagomedov said:

"People who wear the flags say that they represent their native land. But unlike them, I don't r*pe women, don't beat old people, don't tell people to drink alcohol. I represent in my own way. I don't believe that if you wear a flag you're a patriot and if you don't you're not."

In harmony with Nurmagomedov's statement, the former UFC champion almost never visually represents his home country on his social media. 'The Eagle' does, however, frequently represent his religion, Islam.

Nurmagomedov continued to explain why he felt the visual of a flag was meaningless by saying:

"There are many things that you must do before you raise that flag. It's not enough to just raise it. You have to show good character."

Fan reactions were overwhelmingly positive, with one commenting:

"A man of integrity and wise words... Many governments, media and police around the world are disgracing their flag"

Others commented similar reactions, writing:

"As an Irish person I have nothing but respect for this man"

"He steals my heart... over and over"

"Wow his words are perfectly understandable... love and peace to Khabib"

"Words of wisdom from a true champion"

The Hall of Famer did not ever walk out to the octagon with a Russian flag in agreement with his claims.

View more fan reactions to Khabib Nurmagomedov's statement below:

Fan reactions to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC Moscow [via sk mma on YouTube]

Watch the full video of Khabib Nurmagomedov's opinion of country flags below:

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What is Khabib Nurmagomedov doing now?

Though Nurmagomedov does not don a national flag, he has always proudly represented his home country. After the champion's retirement, he has since done work in Russia while attempting to improve MMA in Dagestan.

Nurmagomedov spent time coaching for a while but officially retired from coaching prior to Islam Makhachev's super fight with Alexander Volkanovski. Nurmagomedov confirmed and repeated his retirement following Makhachev's most recent win.

Nurmagomedov also founded the Eagles MMA team as well as Eagle Fighting Championship, both of which are based out of Russia.