Conor McGregor Reveals Reason Behind Loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov
We all know how the fight between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov turned out. It was a slugfest, one which is forever etched in history. It wasn’t an ordinary fight as the fiery temper from both sides escalated beyond the Octagon’s premises.
It was a tragic loss for the Irishman as he lost under submission at the fourth round of UFC 229 last October.
Months passed and many thought that part of the fight was over — but it wasn’t. McGregor spoke out about the fight and finally revealed the reason why he lost to the Russian. He said that he lacked the motivation to win at UFC 229.
Specifically speaking, the Irishman said that his many achievements and wins in the UFC made him feel overly confident and satisfied with his status. Unfortunately, this caused his eventual downfall.
Many sports bookmakers even predicted McGregor’s loss because of his overconfidence. You can get William Hill codes if you plan on checking the next predictions.
Meanwhile, McGregor admitted that his guard was put down in the days leading to the fight. Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov was very thirsty in snatching a win as he hasn’t experienced going on a fight with this magnitude, Conor implied.
False expectations spiral out of control
McGregor said in an interview with Mike Pendleton that winning year after year was good, but this eventually made him too relaxed and lopsided. He added that he felt he was too superior for Khabib to defeat him.
However, Conor also said that he did his best in UFC 229. It was just that he didn’t have the same motivation that he had with his previous fights. The fighter continued saying that fighters prey on that weakness and that’s just what happened when Khabib knew where to strike him best.
McGregor also admitted that he didn’t respect Khabib as he thought of him to be way down his rank. He added that he was very eager and confident and that he was in peak shape, that’s why he didn’t bother to strategize and think of unorthodox ways of defeating the Russian.
Surprisingly, McGregor recognized his weaknesses, and in the process, praised Khabib for the first time. He said that the Russian fighter was a formidable opponent and that his experience in wrestling bears as a kid did a lot of good to him in his career.
Unfortunately, it was too late for McGregor to realize all of this, and so he lost.
Meanwhile, McGregor said that a rematch must happen because the fight didn’t end well. An out-of-the-octagon physical feud happened after the fight which ended in having both fighters suspended.
The now-father of two said that a post-fight dispute is a good sign that there must be a rematch. He even added that him slapping Khabib’s brother and cousin is enough reason to schedule another rematch.
Could a Rematch Happen?
Nurmagomedov maintaining a clean record is unacceptable for McGregor as this defied his “claim to the throne.” Thus, it makes sense for a rematch to happen at the soonest possible time while the hype between the two fighters is still alive.
However, McGregor needs to wait until November for that plan to take shape as Khabib will have ended his suspension from then on. Meanwhile, Conor’s suspension will end in July.
According to reports, Nurmagomedov said that he isn’t planning on fighting back in Las Vegas. The Russian also intends to fight back on or after November if there are any offers.
It’s worth noting that the respective teams of McGregor and Nurmagomedov were involved in a melee after the fight which resulted in their suspensions, as well as their teammate’s. However, Khabib said that he will not fight until his teammates finish their suspensions this fall.
Meanwhile, McGregor recently said in a tweet that he is retiring from MMA. It might seem official and firm, but many believe this to just be one of his strategies to create hype.
Most analysts agree that this is similar to Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao’s retirement where they still came back to the sport after a few years, even months.
