Outside Source
McGregor is scheduled to return to action after five years in a welterweight matchup against Max Holloway (27-9) at UFC 329 on July 11 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. However, Nurmagomedov doesn’t think McGregor will show up on fight night. In case McGregor does show up, Nurmagomedov believes he will lose to Holloway. The PFL lightweight champion believes five years is too long of a layoff for McGregor. However, Nurmagomedov believes MMA will benefit if McGregor manages to win. According to Nurmagomedov, McGregor will bring more fans to the sport with his exceptional mic skills.
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“First of all, I don’t believe he is gonna come,” Nurmagomedov told Home of Fight “If he will, I don’t believe he’s gonna beat [Holloway]. Because five years he stayed away from the sport, this is too much, very long. If [Conor] beats [Holloway], it will be good for MMA. He will begin to talk and more fans come back.”
While McGregor (22-6) has never been on good terms with the Dagestani squad, Nurmagomedov has enough reason to be skeptical about his return even otherwise. McGregor hasn’t fought since breaking his leg in a trilogy loss against Dustin Poirier in 2021. While “Notorious” recovered within a year, he strayed far away from the discipline of a professional athlete. However, that didn’t stop him from teasing a return multiple times, albeit it never came to fruition. McGregor was even booked to fight Michael Chandler at UFC 303 in 2024, only to pull out due to a toe injury.
Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov (21-0) will look to defend his lightweight title against fellow undefeated fighter Archie Colgan (13-0) at PFL New Yorkon July 31 at the UBS Arena in Long Island, New York.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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