Did you spot THIS at Conor McGregor vs Khabib? [SERIOUS WARNING: Gruesome images from UFC]

For, minutes earlier, Tony Ferguson and Anthony Pettis were involved in a fight that resulted in horrific injuries at the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

In what’s been dubbed one of the most brutal clashes in UFC history, Ferguson beat Pettis after his opponent was rendered unable to continue due to a broken hand.

But before it got to that stage both fighters had to stop and be checked over due to the stream of blood flowing from them.

Splashes of blood even covered UFC commentator Jon Anik, who was ringside watching the fight.

McGregor and Khabib walked into the octagon minutes later and blood could still be seen smeared over the canvas.

After the victory Ferguson revealed he wanted to fight Khabib because McGregor ‘does not want to fight me’.

Ferguson said: “Khabib and I deserve to fight. We need to fight for the fifth time, we need to try this out again. He is the champ, I was the interim champ. I’m still the f***ing champ.

“Conor does not want to fight me. I saw him when we were walking out to the weigh-ins. He walked up, he did his strut, I turned around and he f***ing stopped.

“He looked like a deer in headlights. Nobody wants to be trapped inside that cage with me. They don’t want to get killed by my elbows.

“They don’t want to get hit by any of my kicks and they don’t want to get their conditioning checked by me. I’m a different animal than these guys. They want to be animals inside there, I’m a dogcatcher guys. I got a noose for them.”

McGregor, however, has other ideas. He says he is ready to fight Nurmagomedov again despite violent scenes in Las Vegas after the Russian had defeated the Irishman.

McGregor’s mixed martial arts return after a near two-year hiatus fell flat as he tapped out midway through the fourth round at UFC 229, and Nurmagomedov soured a career-best performance with his actions immediately afterwards.

The Russian, whose victory meant he retained his lightweight title, threw his gumshield, vaulted the cage and attacked someone from McGregor’s camp.

While that was happening, McGregor was set upon and attacked by at least two men who entered the cage as the bad blood between the camps came to a head.

But the Irishman seemed unfazed by all that as he tweeted: “Good knock. Looking forward to the rematch.”

Nurmagomedov expressed his regret at what had unfolded but showed his disdain for McGregor’s behaviour leading up to the fight, including the notorious bus attack in April that left several rival fighters injured.

The 30-year-old said: “First of all I want to say sorry to Nevada Athletic Commission and second to Vegas. I know this is not my best side. I’m a human being.

“But I don’t understand how people can talk about how I jump on the cage. He talked about my religion, he talked about my country, he talked about my father.

“He came to Brooklyn and he broke a bus, he almost killed a couple of people. What about this s***? Why do people talk about me jumping over the cage? I don’t understand.

“This is a respectful sport, not a trash-talking sport. I want to change the game, you cannot talk about religion, about nationality.”