Conor McGregor slams Khabib Nurmagomedov, accuses him of avoiding rematch: “He’s afraid”

Conor McGregor recently accused his arch-rival Khabib Nurmagomedov of dodging a fight against him, claiming that The Eagle is not a true fighter. The Notorious One suffered a fourth-round submission defeat to the current reigning lightweight champion at the main event of UFC 229. Despite this, McGregor believes that he could defeat The undefeated Russian in a rematch.

McGregor vs Khabib: Conor McGregor slams Khabib Nurmagomedov

Conor McGregor recently sat down with ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, where he claimed that Khabib Nurmagomedov is scared to face him again. “I think he’s afraid to fight me. That’s for damn sure. You know, and I don’t blame him. I know everything, I fought the best of him on that night (UFC 229), he fought the worst of me on that night; he knows it, I know it, his team knows it. I have the answer to destroy that man,” he added.

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Khabib retirement: Conor McGregor on Nurmagomedov’s retirement

Khabib Nurmagomedov announced his retirement from MMA, after defeating Justin Gaethje at the main event of UFC 254. After the bout, the champion broke down in tears, while remembering his father and head coach, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who passed away in July 2020. Later, while taking off his gloves, Nurmagomedov revealed that he made a promise to his mother that he would no longer compete without his late father in his corner.  

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Though McGregor admitted that Khabib retired from the sport because of his father’s passing, he couldn’t resist himself from taking a dig at The Eagle for leaving when he still had so many great fights left in the division. “I think his hand was shown. He's not a true fighter in my opinion. How could you walk away? There's so many great fights to be had,” he added. Despite this, McGregor wished Nurmagomedov “all the best” for the future, while making it clear that he’ll keep on going.

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Khabib retirement: Is McGregor vs Khabib 2 possible?

Just a day after McGregor made these comments, UFC president Dana White sat down with Khabib Nurmagomedov where the two discussed the champion’s future. During the meeting, Khabib told White that he would only come back if he likes the upcoming performances of the top lightweight contenders. So, if McGregor could deliver yet another impressive performance on Saturday night, he could get another crack at The Eagle in the near future.  

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