There is still talk of a rematch between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor despite ‘The Notorious’ being currently retired.
Khabib submitted McGregor in the UFC 229 headliner in 2018 to retain his lightweight title but McGregor has been very vocal about a rematch and is confident he would avenge his loss to the undefeated Dagestani.
If McGregor did return to the Octagon, reigning UFC light heavyweight champion and pound-for-pound No. 1 Jon Jones would put his money on Nurmagomedov — purely due to the fact that ‘The Eagle’ can dictate where the fight goes with his wrestling.
“I typically don’t go against wrestlers if you’re asking me as a betting man,” Jones told TMZ in a recent interview, per TalkSport. “Wrestlers have the power to dictate where the fight goes, whether it’s going to be a standing match or whether he’s going to take him to the ground and make it a jiu-jitsu match.
“I think the cards are always in Khabib’s hands. Conor definitely has a chance, but if I were to put my money on it, I’m definitely going with Khabib, for sure.”
McGregor, the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion, hasn’t fought since his 40-second blitz of Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC 246. Khabib, on the other hand, is preparing for a title unification bout against newly-crowned interim lightweight champion Justin Gaethje at UFC 254. The highly anticipated PPV will take place on Oct. 24 at a TBD location.