Conor McGregor vs Khabib: What next for Nurmagomedov in the UFC - will he get banned, stripped and who could he fight next?

Khabib Nurmagomedov may remain the undefeated, undisputed lightweight champion of the world – but his immediate future within the UFC is incredibly unclear.

Nurmagomedov defeated long-term rival Conor McGregor in emphatic style at UFC 229, dominating the first two rounds before submitting his opponent via neck crank in the fourth.

However, the carnage which followed the bout – with Nurmagomedov vaulting over the Octagon walls to attack McGregor’s training partner, Dillon Danis – mean repercussions are likely.

But exactly what does Nurmagomedov’s immediate future look like? Here, we take a look at what may come next for the 30-year-old Dagestani.

One thing is for certain: Nurmagomedov will be sat in front of the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) very soon.

The NSAC is currently in the process of filing complaints against both Nurmagomedov and McGregor, with a full investigation into the melee now underway. Nurmagomedov is yet to be paid his $2m pay check following the fight because of the fracas.

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“We will be filing against Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov,” NSAC chairman Anthony Marnell told ESPN.

“Because we withheld one purse, we will have to move expeditiously to a complaint and hearing. We have held 100 percent of one of the fighter's money, so the goal is to get the complaints out in the next 24 to 48 hours.”

Once the NSAC investigation is completed, Bennett has said complaints could be filed with the Nevada deputy attorney general. This would result in things getting a whole lot more serious for Nurmagomedov.

If the NSAC opted for this course of action, hearings and sanctions for both men would be likely.

Fines would be a certainty. Suspensions would be likely.

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“This is a serious issue, this is not a light issue,” Marnell added.

“This isn't, ‘We smacked each other in the face in a hotel lobby the week of a fight.’ This is the night of the event, and it needs to stay inside that field of combat. There are serious regulations and statutes about what took place, and the consequences have to match the actions.”

Dana White, the president of the UFC, has already suggested that Nurmagomedov would be stripped of his lightweight title if he was slapped with a sufficiently lengthy suspension.

“The Nevada State Athletic Commission is going to hand out some sort of fine or suspension and after that we’ll see,” White said after the fight.

“If he gets suspended, it depends on how long his suspension is and yeah, he’s probably going to get stripped if it’s a long suspension.”

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And what would happen to the belt? Tony Ferguson would almost certainly be given the first shot at it – possibly in a fight with McGregor if the Irishman escapes with less sanctions than Nurmagomedov.

Who else could Ferguson fight? A rematch with Dustin Poirier would be a possibility, or former champion Eddie Alvarez.

Providing Nurmagomedov isn’t severely punished by the NSAC – who could he fight next?

McGregor is already angling for a rematch. “Good knock,” he tweeted on Sunday, after the fight. “Looking forward to the rematch.”

“Conor McGregor has already called me wanting an immediate rematch,” White told ESPN’s “First Take” on Monday.

A rematch would guarantee the UFC another record-breaking night – but will they hand McGregor what he wants given how emphatically Khabib defeated him as well as the carnage that followed?

The smart money is instead on Khabib fighting Ferguson – with a lucrative rematch with McGregor instead pencilled in for late 2019.

“We’ll see what happens with Khabib and what’s next,” White added. “I mean, Tony Ferguson looked amazing, those two have been lined up to fight three different times and it hasn’t happened, so we’ll see how this thing plays out.”