Conor McGregor v Khabib Nurmagomedov Preview – October 6th, 2018
It is one of the most hyped and most anticipated fights of the year and it’s coming up this weekend. Conor McGregor steps back into the octagon to face rival Khabib Nurmagomedov in his UFC comeback fight. The bout is going down in Las Vegas and there is certainly no love lost between these two. The fireworks should be flying in Sin City.
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Conor McGregor v Khabib Nurmagomedov Odds*
Khabib Nurmagomedov 5/8
Conor McGregor 13/10
* (betting odds taken from bet365 on October 2nd, 2018 at 4:20 pm)
The Rivalry
McGregor lost his lightweight and featherweight title belts because of inactivity, not having fought now for two years, and Nurmagomedov was installed as the lightweight champion. That didn’t go down well with the Irishman who wants his crown back.
Earlier this year McGregor accepted a plea deal at a heading in New York to have felony charges dismissed for an attack on fellow UFC fighters. Following UFC 223 Conor and his entourage and attacked the bus which was carrying Nurmagomedov, McGregor caught on video throwing a metal dolly through the window of the bus.
McGregor
McGregor’s last fight was back in November 2016 when he beat Eddie Alvarez to win the lightweight belt. During his couple of years away from the sport, he did enter into that big money boxing spectacle against undefeated world champions Floyd Mayweather as the Irishman switched disciplines and lost. At least in the ring, not in the pocket in a mega-million deal.
Now he is fired up to right some injustices that he appears to feel have beset him. He’s not happy about Nurmagomedov holding the lightweight title and he has been irritated with the featherweight title having been stripped from him as well.
McGregor holds a W21 L3 record in his MMA career, his most recent defeat suffered was against Nate Diaz back in early 2016 before getting his revenge in a rematch later that year in a welterweight belt.
McGregor by KO TKO Submission or Disqualification is at 13/8 odds* (betting odds taken on October 2nd, 2018 at 4:20 pm)
Nurmagomedov
Nurmagomedov is the undefeated lightweight champion in the UFC and this is such a huge moment for the Russian. His status will go through the roof if he takes down McGregor, especially in his home country. All of the build-up and hype in the usual media circus has been on McGregor.
That usually happens and it is something that can irk and undermine opponents. McGregor knows how to play to the press and he is playing the bad guy once again, set on the path of revenge and to prove that he is the real king of the sport.
Khabib holds a 26-0 career record and is the direct rival to McGregor. He is the opposite in style to McGregor and the opposite in personality as well. Khabib is a wrestler whereas McGregor is someone who is going to stand up for a long as possible and gets his strikes off.
It is these difference between the rivals which really adds that extra interest to this because this could be a fight for the ages and no matter who comes out on top, there is going to be a lot of talk about this one. Don’t be surprised to hear a rematch announced pretty quickly either.
Nurmagomedov by KO TKO Submission or Disqualification is at 11/10 odds* (betting odds taken on October 2nd, 2018 at 4:20 pm)
Predictions
Wrestler or Striker? Which one wins out? Nurmagomedov has to go out and get McGregor down in the first round. That is where it is all going to count for him because he needs to get the Irishman as winded and as tired as possible. If Khabib can do that then his wrestling skills are going to cause McGregor huge problems.
The big problem is that McGregor is a tremendous defender against takedowns. He has a huge reach-advantage because of his height and is able to fend off attempts to get him down to the mat. His reach and strikes are something that he uses to massive advantage in the first round of fights, because he makes himself such a difficult target to hit and grapple.
This is a difficult fight for both fighters because of what both are up against. The key for McGregor is standing up in the first round. If he does that then his extra reach as the fight wears on is going to be all important. If Khabib can’t get it done when his energy is high in the first then the advantage is going to swing to the Irishman.
At the end of the day, given his style, it is going to be easier for McGregor to get a decision victory if it goes all the way. However, we think that he is going to tag his opponent enough, swinging in the second and we are going to back McGregor to finish the fight in the third which is at 12/1 odds* (betting odds taken on October 2nd, 2018 at 4:20 pm).
