Remember that wild cageside brawl at WSOF 22 – the one with Khabib Nurmagomedov, the Diaz brothers, and seemingly dozens of other random folks? Nurmagomedov know he shouldn’t have taken part, though he said it was hard not to.

The brawl took place Aug. 1 at Las Vegas’ Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino and marred the NBCSN-televised event. Clips of the wild scene soon grabbed headlines as a trio of UFC vets – Nurmagomedov, as well as UFC vets Nate Diaz and Nick Diaz – tangled in the stands (and eventually a nearby hallway):

“You know, fights happen between men,” Nurmagomedov told MMAjunkie on Saturday. “It’s OK. It’s normal. Sometimes it happens. But you know what? I’m a professional fighter. I’m a UFC fighter. I’m here at a very big show in Las Vegas. Lot of people here. Lot of women here. Lot of kids here.

“And I can’t fight. I can’t fight. And these guys are beginning to go like crazy with me. But I said, ‘Khabib, you need to stay (calm).'”

However, according to Nurmagomedov, who’s on the mend following knee surgery, the Diaz bros. kept taunting him and trying to goad him into a fight.

“When he began the second time, I went crazy too.” he said. ” … I have to protect myself.”

Nurmagomedov, who’s ranked No. 2 in the NOS Energy Drink MMA lightweight rankings, has had a long-running feud with Nate Diaz but suggested a brawl is no big deal – at least among professional cage fighters.

“It’s OK,” he said. “This happened between a few men, a few fighters. In the gym, a lot of times that happens.

“But I know I’m talking about this too much, but for me, it’s normal. For me, it’s normal. But I know I’m a professional fighter. I’m a UFC fighter. I cannot fight when there are a lot of people here. But when somebody begins fighting with me, I need to protect myself.”

Out of action since April 2014, Nurmagomedov said he’s ready to do his fighting in the cage, not out of it. And when he does return, he has a plan. With reigning lightweight titleholder Rafael dos Anjos (24-7 MMA, 13-5 UFC) slated to fight Donald Cerrone (28-6 MMA, 15-3 UFC) at UFC on FOX 17 on Dec. 19, Nurmagomedov wants the winner.

“This is a very hard for me,” he said. “No. 1 now for me now is to have my knee (healed), come back, beat somebody, and next year fight for the title.”

Check out the above video as the 26-year-old discusses the brawl, his knee, a new fight team, and more.

And for more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.