Khabib Nurmagomedov opens door to Conor McGregor rematch – on one condition

Khabib Nurmagomedov said he’d step back in the cage with Conor McGregor again, but the Dubliner will have to beat top-rated opposition first.

Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC), the undefeated UFC lightweight champion, had previously played down suggestions he’d face McGregor (22-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) inside the octagon again, saying that a repeat matchup would produce a repeat result, and told ESPN that “Conor (is) always going to be No. 2 – always. He can never do nothing with me. Inside the cage with me, he’s zero.”

But despite McGregor announcing his second retirement earlier this year, the Irishman has continued firing social media jabs Nurmagomedov’s way.

It prompted reporters at Nurmagomedov’s Friday news conference in Russia to ask whether he’d ever entertain the possibility of facing McGregor in the UFC again.

Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) responded by saying he would fight McGregor a second time, but the Irishman would have to come out of retirement and earn his shot first.

“Let him come back (and) defeat Dustin Poirier, then we will fight with him – no problem,” he said (via translation).

Both men have fought, and beaten, Poirier in their careers. McGregor finished the Louisiana native in 106 seconds in their featherweight bout at UFC 178 in September 2014. More recently, Nurmagomedov submitted “The Diamond” with a second-round rear-naked choke in their lightweight title unification bout at UFC 242 in September 2019.

Poirier has since bounced back with a unanimous decision win over Dan Hooker at UFC on ESPN 12 to maintain his spot at No. 2 behind champ Nurmagomedov in the MMA Junkie/USA TODAY Sports lightweight MMA rankings. McGregor currently sits fifth.