Ex-UFC fighter targeted by gang, "narcissist" Conor McGregor has no interest in politics, Colby Covington accused of taking drugs: MMA Rumor Roundup

A former UFC fighter-turned-coach allegedly became the target of a mob hit. Elsewhere, Conor McGregot got labeled as a "narcissist" for his recent political commentary.

Here are this week's biggest combat sports rumors and reports, presented by Sportskeeda MMA.

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Former UFC fighter allegedly targeted by mafia

An upcoming MMA event was canceled after a former UFC fighter was suspected of being in danger.

According to a report by the Daily Mail, NSW police shut down a Dark Matter Fighting Championship card that was scheduled for April 19 at the William Inglis Hotel in Warwick Farm in Sydney, Australia. They found that ex-UFC star Sumar Mokhtarian, who would've been present at the event as a coach, was the intended target of a gangland hit.

Mokhtarian, 32, was the objective of an alleged assassination attempt in February last year when a man disguised himself as a delivery driver and tried to gun him down in Sydney. The accused, Noa Touma, was charged with attempted murder.

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Conor McGregor has "absolutely no interest in politics," says Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen believes that Conor McGregor's recent claim about wanting to run for Ireland's president stems from a craving for attention and is not genuine. The former UFC fighter said on his YouTube channel:

"Conor [McGregor] is a narcissist. I know that because I am a narcissist, I know what I'm looking at. A narcissist has what is known as a 'Narcissistic Supply,' which means I need a level of attention to feed me. Where am I going to get that?... A great place that most athletes go to is social media."

Sonnen added that the Irishman has little to no interest in going into politics:

"When Conor makes statements, you have to take that into consideration. I don't know if Conor can spell 'Politics', but I do know he has absolutely no interest in politics... We're just being silly."

This came after McGregor met with Donald Trump at the White House on St. Patrick's Day. The UFC star's presidential bid for the Irish presidency was rejected by multiple politicians of the country, whose backing would be necessary if McGregor wants to run for office.

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Jorge Masvidal accuses Colby Covington of taking drugs

Jorge Masvidal's fallout with former best friend Colby Covington is one for the UFC history books. Despite a lackluster grudge match and a public skirmish, they have not managed to bury the hatchet.

In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Masvidal said that Covington regularly partakes in substance abuse:

"I saw the highlights of [his latest bout against Joaquin Buckley]. I liked it, Buckley busted his a** up... I wasn't surprised. [Covington] does a lot of drugs and sh*t from what I hear, man. It's catching up. His cardio, his God-given ability, the only thing he has and he snorted it away."

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Islam Makhachev's coach shares theory on Jon Jones

Islam Makhachev's coach, Javier Mendez, believes that the delay in Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall fight has nothing to do with money. He believes Jones will leave no stone unturned to win against Tom Aspinall, if the fight ever happens, and the six-month period 'Bones' demanded was to prepare himself to be victorious by hook or crook.

He said on the Javier & Mo Show:

"He’s a perfectionist. This guy will do everything he can to win. He’s a winner. He knows how to win, and he’ll do certain things that are maybe not ethical or unethical, just so he can win... I don’t think it’s about as much money for him as it is winning. I think money does come into play, but I think he gets enough money. I think it’s he wants to basically win, make sure he wins properly."

The fight has been a long time in the making and is being touted for the summer this year. Veteran MMA reporter and analyst Ariel Helwani is concerned that the UFC may make Aspinall wait even longer to keep the fight for the New York card in November, and it could end up being like a Conor McGregor-Michael Chandler situation.

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Henry Cejudo's theory about Ilia Topuria

Henry Cejudo believes that Ilia Topuria changing his nickname from 'El Matador' to 'La Leyenda' has a deeper meaning. The new moniker, which means 'The Legend' in English, could hint at Topuria's next fight, 'Triple C' guessed.

Speaking on The Bohnfire podcast, Cejudo said:

"Think about. Dustin Poirier did say he's only fighting legends for his retirement fight, and Ilia Topuria just changed his name to 'Legend.' We're probably on to something, Mike [Bohn]."

Topuria is expected to either fight Charles Oliveira or Arman Tsarukyan in his return to lightweight or directly challenge Islam Makhachev for the UFC belt.

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Daniel Cormier seems to know about Islam Makhachev's next fight

Daniel Cormier, who is close to Khabib Nurmagomedov and his whole team, does not think Ilia Topuria gets to challenge for the UFC lightweight belt next.

During a recent episode of his Funky & The Champ show with Ben Askren, Cormier said:

"I honestly believe that's who [Justin Gaethje] is going to fight for the belt. I believe it's going to be Gaethje... if I'm team [Islam] Makhachev, I'm asking for Justin Gaethje because that's a big-name fight. It's the guy who carries a lot of name recognition. I think that's going to be the fight if I'm being honest with you."

In the chat with Mike Bohn, mentioned previously, Henry Cejudo claimed that Nurmagomedov is not in favor of Makhachev fighting Topuria unless the Spaniard beats the No. 1 UFC lightweight contender first.