Khabib Nurmagomedov calls for McGregor fight in December after boxing debut defeat
Following McGregor's unfortunate boxing debut against the sports icon Floyd Mayweather, undefeated Russian UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov has called for a bout against the Irishman.
Within just hour after the boxing match titled ‘The Money Fight’ in Las Vegas, which saw the 40-year-old Mayweather beat McGregor via technical knockout in the 10th round, Nurmagomedov took to social media to make his call.
“30 December. UFC 219. Why not? I think December is a perfect date for that fight, plus he said himself that he wanted to fight me after Mayweather,”wrote Nurmagomedov on his Instagram page.
The fight idea was originally thrown into the media when UFC head Dana White mentioned it at the end of June.
“You know what Conor told me? He said, ‘I want Khabib in Russia,’” White said back then.
“Isn’t he [expletive] awesome? Conor McGregor is a [expletive] unicorn. There’s nothing like him. He’s working on boxing Floyd Mayweather and then he’s talking about fighting Khabib in Russia right after,” he said.
The 29-year-old Russian was looking to fight Tony Ferguson at UFC 217 on November 4, but the UFC recently announced that Ferguson will instead face Kevin Lee at UFC 216 on October 7.
And while Ferguson and Lee will fight for the interim lightweight title, White told reporters this week that the winner won’t necessarily face the current lightweight champion, McGregor.
READ MORE: ‘McGregor wants Khabib fight in Russia after Mayweather’ – UFC head White
“I don’t know, we will see,” he said answering the question on the matter.
He has also backed the earlier mentioned McGregor intentions to face Nurmagomedov.
“Conor told me he wants to go fight Khabib in Russia. Khabib is not healthy. When Khabib gets healthy again we’ll start talking on what’s next for Khabib,” he added.
A few days ago McGregor’s wrestling coach Sergey Pikulskiy also said that he is personally dreaming of the Irishman facing Nurmagomedov following the boxing match.
READ MORE: ‘Khabib next is the dream fight’: Conor McGregor wrestling coach
“Khabib next is the dream fight for me because he is a Russian wrestler like me,” he told the Sun.
“It would be an amazing fight. Conor is huge in Russia and it is a country that loves mixed martial arts but they have not had the UFC there yet. Having heroes like Conor and Khabib fighting there for their first show would be the dream,” he added.
And while other people involved suggesting the possible fight to happen in Russia, Nurmagomedov referred to the UFC 219 event, which is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas on December 30.
Considering the time zone difference, first ever UFC tournament in Russia is not likely to be a pay-per-view event.
Thus, if the fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov comes to fruition this year, it’s most likely to happen on American soil.
