Khabib Nurmagomedov may be considering a fight with Georges St-Pierre next, if he gets past Justin Gaethje. However he is opening the door for a rematch with Conor McGregor, so long as one thing happens first.
The rivalry between McGregor and Khabib is very real, and very toxic. This, in large part is what stopped the lightweight champion from being open to a rematch with his rival, not to mention the questionable merits involved in offering McGregor another title shot. Regardless he has been rather resistant to the idea of fighting Conor again.
Khabib Nurmagomedov Says He Will Fight Conor McGregor
Finally it would seem that Khabib Nurmagomedov is open to the idea of rematching Conor McGregor. Speaking at a media event in Russia, the Dageatani was asked if his upcoming opponent, Justin Gaethje was more of a striking threat than Conor. Initially being somewhat complimentary towards McGregor, Nurmagomedov then said he would rematch the Irishman, but only if Conor rematched Dustin Poirier first.
“Gaethje is a very good fighter. Is he better standing than Conor? I think no. My fighting IQ tells me that Conor is better in standing than Gaethje,” Nurmagomedov said. “Let (McGregor) come back and defeat Dustin Poirier. Then we will fight with him.”
"Conor is better in standing than Gaethje."
Khabib Nurmagomedov lays down the conditions for a rematch against McGregor. pic.twitter.com/ME9ZnDXbvn
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) August 14, 2020
This is a change in tune from what Khabib was previously saying it would take before he fought McGregor again. It used to be that it would take an nine figure payday, or ten straight wins before they faced off again. The other side to this, is that Nurmagomedov may be reconsidering the idea of retiring at 30 fights, since Dana White seems open to making Khabib’s last fight the GSP fight he has been looking for.
Either way, Khabib Nurmagomedov has to get past Justin Gaethje before he even considers fighting someone else. Maybe this will give Conor McGregor enough time to fight Dustin Poirier.
