Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor II, anybody?
It’s not often that a dominant performance from a champion results in an immediate rematch for the challenger.
But Las Vegas bookmakers believe that the most likely next outing for McGregor is another shot at Nurmagomedov, despite tapping out to a neck crank in the fourth round of UFC 229’s main event.
The score was 29-27 in favour of the defending champion going into the fourth round, with Nurmagomedov earning a dominant 10-8 in the second stanza only for McGregor to rally and become the first fighter to win a round against Nurmagomedov with a 10-9 in the third.
There would be no shortage of storylines going into a potential rematch and while the post-fight melee was condemned by UFC President Dana White, you shouldn’t be one bit surprised if footage of the brawl is used in the promotion of a second fight between Nurmagomedov and McGregor.
Disgusting. #UFC229 pic.twitter.com/bfRMnM6YwL
— Darragh Murphy (@DarrMurphy) October 7, 2018
Some will argue that a rematch doesn’t make sense on merit but even the most naive of fans must be aware that money matters more than anything to a fight promoter and there is no bout more lucrative than Nurmagomedov vs. McGregor II right now.
Sportsbook Bovada have released odds on McGregor’s next fight in the UFC and the rematch with ‘The Eagle’ is considered the favourite at -155 (13/20) while rematches against Nate Diaz and Jose Aldo have been given odds of +130 (13/10) and +900 (9/1) respectively.
A fight against reigning 170lbs champion Tyron Woodley is seen as +1800 (18/1) while a super-fight opposite former welterweight and middleweight champ Georges St-Pierre is +375 (15/4).
Dana White was asked whether he would be interested in promoting a rematch between Nurmagomedov and McGregor, considering the risks that cannot be ignored, but he remained non-committal on running it back.
“We have to see what happens with the Nevada State Athletic Commission,” White said in his post-fight press conference.
“There are going to be fines. There’s going to be God knows what. Can these guys get visas and get back into the country? I mean Khabib. We’ll see how this thing plays out. I’ve been doing this for 18 years and this is the biggest night ever and I couldn’t be more disappointed.”
