Movsar Evloev’s Hijab Request to Nina-Marie Daniele Was Tied to Interview Reluctancy

With just days remaining before he realizes his dream of becoming a UFC champion, Movsar Evloev‘s focus remains on how to beat Alexander Volkanovski—interviews take a back seat. But what happens when an interview becomes unavoidable? Evloev came up with a way to avoid turning down an interview outright when Nina-Marie Daniele, aka Nina Drama, approached him.

“I couldn’t care less about that interview,” Movsar told Russian MMA content creator Adam Zubayraev. “I wanted to turn it down. I just set a condition so she, I thought, would refuse. I said, ‘I’d agree if she wore a hijab,’ so I wouldn’t just refuse outright.

“She agreed, so I had to sit there for the interview. If she wears a hijab for an hour, does that make her a saint? Or do I get some credit for it? Look at what I do myself. The day after tomorrow, I’ll be running around in shorts. Hugging each other indecently, like everyone else.”

Evloev’s comments shed light on his reluctance to participate in the interview, which he gave Nina two days ago. The two had a casual conversation about Evloev’s life and his journey as a fighter. However, Nina’s outfit became one of the most-talked about aspects of their interaction.

Unlike the casual outfits she usually wears during interviews, the social media influencer appeared in a hijab, a head covering traditionally worn by many Muslim women in public and in the presence of men outside their immediate family.

Evloev’s remarks suggest that his request for Nina to wear a hijab had more to do with his reluctance to participate in the interview than with any broader socio-cultural considerations.

Reflecting on the interview Nina wrote, “At the end of the day it’s always about respect. I have so much respect for all my Muslim friends. I love learning about cultures, and I’m so grateful for the UFC for giving me the opportunity to travel the world.

“Some people are offended, and that’s fine; this came from a place of respect and wanting to be able to make Movsar Evloev comfortable in our interview. My interviews are not “mandatory” and never were; the fighters that show up show up because they want to, and I was in no way shape or form “forced” to do anything. Thank you to Movsar and his team for giving me the opportunity to show the fans a different side of him! I’m so happy people are enjoying the interview!”

The interview with Nina is not Evloev’s only documented interaction with female journalists. Available evidence points to other instances of him participating in UFC media coverage.

One notable example is UFC reporter McKenzie Pavacich, who reportedly interviewed him around the time of his March 2026 fight against Lerone Murphy. Claims that he has also spoken with Megan Olivi and Karyn Bryant remain unverified, as the specific interviews could not be conclusively established.

Importantly, there is no verified evidence that Evloev asked other female journalists to wear a hijab for their interview.

The interview was also notable for Nina as it appeared to be the first time a fighter asked the social media personality to wear a hijab. Similarly, there appear to be no other reported instances of a UFC fighter asking Nina to change her outfit to suit their personal preferences.

Meanwhile, there have been reports that fighters such as Islam Makhachev declined to participate in interviews with Nina out of respect for their religious practices.