Conor McGregor hasn't fought in five years, but he remains the biggest draw in combat sports so it stands to reason he's going to get called out by just about everybody from champions to top contenders.
Before he even throws a punch against Max Holloway in their rematch at UFC 329, McGregor has heard his name dropped dozens of times including new undisputed lightweight champion Justin Gaethje expressing interest in that potential matchup. While Gaethje has plenty of options awaiting him after he finished Ilia Topuria at UFC White House, he acknowledged he will be front row for the fights on Saturday and added “I would love to punch Conor McGregor in the face.â€
For his part, McGregor doesn't seem all that interested in granting Gaethje's wish, especially if he gets through Holloway for the second time this weekend.
“Join the queue,†McGregor said at UFC 329 media day on Wednesday. “There's a few [calling for that]. Look, he has the lightweight belt, fair play to him. Holloway put him face down, ass up [at UFC 300], though. Badly. Badly face down.
“So I'm not even thinking of it at this time. Would I go down to lightweight again? Also that's another thing I'm not so sure. I fancy the triple crown. Less with the disrespect, you f*cking bum.â€
The “triple crown†refers to McGregor's interest in adding a third title to his collection after previously holding gold at lightweight and featherweight.
First things first, McGregor has to get through Holloway while coming back from a five-year layoff and recovering from a broken leg suffered in his last outing in 2021.
McGregor understands there are plenty of people doubting him ahead of Saturday's card, but that only adds extra motivation to show he's truly back to his best form.
“Nothing better than proving people wrong,†McGregor said. “People are entitled to their opinion. Some are valid. There's some questions. Time out. Injury. Lifestyle. I know. There you go. Let's go.
“We're going to go in Saturday night and shut them all up again. The business is on the rise. The money is coming in. Get into this game, we're rocking and rolling. ‘The Mac' is back.â€
At his peak, McGregor was not only a massive draw and the first ever simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history, he arguably changed MMA more than any single fighter to ever set foot in the octagon.
A decade has now passed since he held two titles and called himself “champ-champ,†but McGregor believes he's still more than capable of changing the game all over again with his comeback.
“Shake up the game,†McGregor said. “Shake up the business for sure. Prove myself. To myself, I am who I say I am. I am that I am.â€
It
seems the McGregor-Nurmagomedov beef lives on years after it was
settled in the cage. | 📷: Getty/UFC
There's still no love lost between Conor
McGregor and Khabib
Nurmagomedov.
McGregor refused to include Nurmagomedov while recently listing his
greatest fighters of all time in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. According to the former
two-division champion, his bitter rival has barely built a legacy
across his 13 UFC fights. He believes only three of the unbeaten
Russian's opponents were well-known.
Conor McGregor slams Khabib Nurmagomedov's legacy
While McGregor suffered a submission loss to Nurmagomedov back in
2018, the Dubliner claims he wasn't in his best shape. He says he
was doing “bad things†while partying on his yacht before fighting
the then-lightweight champion.
“That guy's done nothing in the sport. 13 fights he's had in the
company, that's it. And three against named opponents. I was off
the yacht [when I fought him]; I was doing bad things on the yacht.
I was partying heavily and I was with my eyeballs in court cases
and all of this,†McGregor told Complex. “I hadn't fought in two
years. I was worth $200 million. I come back and fight this f*cking
guy, I done four rounds with him. I had a broken toe three weeks
before the belt. This guy is nothing. Then, where is he now also?
He's gone.â€
McGregor (22-6) and Nurmagomedov (29-0) shared one of the most
iconic rivalries in UFC history. During the build-up to their
clash, McGregor threw a dolly at a bus carrying Nurmagomedov and
other fighters after “The Eagle†had confronted his teammate
Artem
Lobov. He also made several crude statements about
Nurmagomedov's family and religion.
When they finally met at
UFC 229, the highest-selling UFC pay-per-view of all time,
Nurmagomedov made McGregor tap via a face crank in the fourth
round. The Dagestani then defended his lightweight title two more
times before hanging up his gloves in 2020.
Meanwhile, McGregor rebounded with a win over Donald
Cerrone in 2020, which was his last win in the UFC. He hasn't
fought since consecutive losses to Dustin
Poirier in 2021, the last of which left him with a broken
leg.
McGregor is now set to return in a welterweight matchup against
Max
Holloway (27-9) at
UFC 329 on July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Islam Makhachev (top) and Khabib Nurmagomedov (bottom) each have
a case for UFC GOAT. | 📷: Getty/UFC
Conor
McGregor doesn't harbor any ill will towards Islam
Makhachev.
McGregor recently listed his greatest fighters of all time in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. He ranked himself as the
greatest while slamming the legacy of Makhachev's friend and
mentor, Khabib
Nurmagomedov. However, the former two-division champion had
nothing bad to say about Makhachev.
Why Conor McGregor ranks Islam Makhachev ahead of Khabib
Nurmagomedov and Daniel Cormier
McGregor believes Makhachev ranks above Nurmagomedov on the GOAT
list. He argues that Makhachev not only has titles in two weight
classes, but also more finishes in the UFC than “The Eagle.†The
Irishman has him above Daniel
Cormier as well.
While some believe Makhachev is nearing retirement, McGregor
believes the UFC welterweight champion has a lot left in him.
“He's above Khabib. Finishes, body of work, both divisions. For
sure, he is. Still at it,†he told Complex. “There's a lot left in
that boy, and he should recognize that and keep going. I have him
above both his teammates there, Cormier and [Nurmagomedov].â€
While Nurmagomedov (29-0) defended the lightweight title thrice,
Makhachev (28-1) broke his record by defending it four times before
moving up to welterweight. The latter dominantly dethroned Jack
Della Maddalena to win the 170-pound title this past
November.
Makhachev is now scheduled to defend his title against Ian Garry at
UFC
330 on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, McGregor (22-6) is set to return in a welterweight
matchup against Max
Holloway (27-9) at
UFC 329 on July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Nikita Krylov would like to be the wrench in a former's champ's
plans at 205 pounds. | 📷: Getty/UFC
Nikita
Krylov wants to play spoiler for Robert
Whittaker's light heavyweight move.
Whittaker (26-9) is set to make his light heavyweight debut in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship against Krylov (31-11) at
UFC 329 on Saturday, July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las
Vegas.
Krylov believes Whittaker envisions a light heavyweight move like
Alex
Pereira, who went on to win the title at 205 pounds. However,
the Ukrainian-born Russian fighter has claimed that the former
middleweight champion's move up is more likely to end up like
Israel
Adesanya’s or Chris
Weidman's.
Nikita Krylov says Robert Whittaker’s light heavyweight move
mirrors Israel Adesanya
Adesanya only fought once at light heavyweight, losing his title
bid to then-champion Jan
Blachowicz in 2021. Weidman had also moved back to middleweight
after being thwarted at light heavyweight by Dominick
Reyes in 2019. Krylov hopes to send Whittaker back to 185
pounds in a similar fashion.
“It looks like he wants to move up like Alex
Pereira. But I think it may end up the way it did in Adesanya's
case,†Krylov told Red Corner MMA. “Jan Blachowicz beat Israel
Adesanya; Dominick Reyes beat Chris Weidman; I'd like to see
something similar for Robert as well.â€
Whittaker never reclaimed his middleweight title after losing it to
Adesanya in 2019. The Australian is moving up to light heavyweight
on the back of consecutive losses to Khamzat
Chimaev and Reinier
de Ridder.
Meanwhile, Krylov has gone 6-6 in the UFC since making his Octagon
debut in 2018. He is coming off a stoppage win over Modestas
Bukauskas, rebounding from back-to-back losses to Reyes and
Bogdan
Guskov.
Nikita
Krylov believes Robert
Whittaker could face the same challenges other former
middleweights have faced after moving up in weight ahead of their
clash at #UFC329
in Las Vegas.
“It looks like he wants to move up like Alex
Pereira. But I think it may end up the way it did in… pic.twitter.com/p3fzWBRlH4