Khabib Nurmagomedov and his team continue to stress that the UFC lightweight champion is not interested in a rematch with Conor McGregor.
In fact, manager Ali Abdelaziz thinks there’s a higher chance that Nurmagomedov faces Georges St-Pierre before running things back with McGregor.
“He’s Khabib’s ‘son,’ he’s my ‘nephew,’ and I think my nephew needs to sit back a little and let the big boys handle business – let (Justin) Gaethje fight Tony (Ferguson),” Abdelaziz told MMA Junkie. “If you say Khabib No. 1, Gaethje and Tony are No. 2 and 3, (McGregor’s) No. 4.
“And No. 4, he’s probably going to sit out maybe a year before he gets a crack at a title. But I can see Khabib fighting ‘GSP’ before he fights Conor. I really truly do. I’m not trying to promote a fight … and I know Georges did an interview and said some things. But let’s see what happens.”
But Abdelaziz reiterated that Nurmagomedov will continue to face the next challenger in line, which will be the winner of the interim lightweight title fight between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 on May 9.
And the only real way he sees a McGregor rematch happening is if Nurmagomedov’s father decides it’s the right next move.
“Khabib is always going to be fair to the contenders,” Abdelaziz said. “One thing fighters should respect, and they will miss: Khabib is never going to step over a No. 1 contender for a money fight. I promise you that. If you’re the No. 1 contender, he’s going to give you a shot over a money fight. But listen, Conor makes a lot of sense financially. It’s a lot more money. As a fight, I think Khabib can make $50 million (against McGregor).
“I’m not the boss. He’s not the boss. His father is the boss, and whatever his father wants, that’s what’s going to happen. Khabib has no say so. I have no say so. His father has the say so. If his father wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Boys get it together, we’re fighting Conor,’ we’re fighting Conor.”