Conor McGregor has to hit a long road before he can have another shot at a lightweight clash against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
In case you are living under the rocks, the lightweight rivals first met in the main event of the UFC 229 at the T-mobile Arena last October 2018.
Nurmagomedov gave the Irishman a rude welcome on his return from a two-year hiatus, defeating him via a fourth-round submission to stay unblemished and to retain the 155-pound title.
In what Dana White described as the darkest day in MMA, both camps tussled in an ugly post-fight brawl, which resulted to hefty fines and lengthy suspensions.
The bear-wrestling Dagestani has returned to action last September and successfully unified the lightweight titles by making quick work of the then-interim champion, Dustin Poirier.
Meanwhile, ‘The Notorious’ sustained a hand injury in training, which put his highly-anticipated MMA comeback on hold.
Shortly after Khabib became the undisputed champion, McGregor took to social media and called for their rematch.
Possible
Team Khabib has ruled out any possibilities of a rematch with McGregor as they are eyeing a title-defence against the number one contender, Tony Ferguson, or a super fight with MMA legend, Georges St-Pierre.
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson have been booked many times in the past but both fighters have experienced individual setbacks that led to their withdrawal.
St-Pierre, meanwhile, has expressed his interest in coming out of retirement to fight Khabib in early 2020.
But in a recent Q and A with fans in Russia, Khabib claimed he is willing to run it back with the former two-weight champion but in one condition.
“As for a rematch, to fight for a belt in the UFC, I remember I had something like nine or 10 fights,” the lightweight champ said, based on translations from ESPN.
“If he wins 10 fights in a row, then that’s completely possible.”
Apology
The undefeated Russian has also given his terms for the Nevada State Athletic Commission if the UFC decides to hold his next title-fight in Las Vegas.
“We’re in talks now [for the Ferguson fight],”
“They suggested having it in Vegas in March, but they have to issue me an official apology for fining me for the incident on Oct. 6, 2018.”
“If they apologize, I’ll fight.”
“If not, we’ll pick another venue. I’ll fight in April in New York. I’ll be ready in April, March if Vegas apologizes or gives me back my money.”
The commission slapped Nurmagomedov with $50 000 fine a nine-month suspension for his involvement in the chaotic UFC 229 brawl.
“Those are my conditions. We’re in talks now.”
Khabib currently holds a perfect 28-0 win-loss slate in his professional MMA career and has tied Ferguson for the longest win streak at 155 pounds with 12 straight victories.
(Featured Image Source: Instagram/ Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov)