Conor McGregor Megafight Turned Down By UFC Champ

Conor McGregor

Getty Conor McGregor celebrates his first round TKO victory as he exits the arena against Donald Cerrone in a welterweight bout during UFC246 at T-Mobile Arena on January 18, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

UFC interim lightweight champion Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje is not interested in fighting Irish superstar Conor “Notorious” McGregor, according to Ali Abdelaziz. Abdelaziz, Gaethje’s manager, recently spoke with TMZ and confirmed that his client is willing to sit out of action until lightweight champ Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov is ready to unify the title.

Khabib and Gaethje were potentially going to fight in September, however with the recent death of The Eagle’s father, it is unclear if the fight will happen then. Abdelaziz, who also manages Khabib, confirmed with TMZ that the two will fight in 2020.

Gaethje and McGregor have been on a collision course since the Irishman returned to the Octagon in January. However, the pairing will not happen anytime soon. When asked if there was a possibility that McGregor and Gaethje could fight instead of Gaethje competing against Khabib next, Abdelaziz said, “Justin said no. Khabib told me to tell Justin to go fight Conor. Justin said no. Listen, we dictate this. Conor right now could be a backup fighter.”

Abdelaziz then said that McGregor needed to earn more victories before he challenged for the lightweight strap, and suggested that he fight Nate Diaz, Jorge Masvidal or Islam Makhachev next.

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Gaethje Called Out McGregor Multiple Times in 2020 But He Now Holds the Interim Belt

The Highlight campaigned tirelessly on social media for a fight against McGregor during the first half of 2020. The fight never came to fruition for Gaethje, but he’s had a fulfilling 2020 anyway. After Khabib was forced to withdraw from his bout with Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, The Highlight stepped in. Gaethje and Ferguson fought in May for the interim lightweight strap.

The Highlight put on the most impressive performance of his MMA career, dominating Ferguson for most of the fight and finishing him in the fifth round by TKO. Gaethje now holds the interim strap and unifying it against Khabib is his highest priority.


McGregor Retired from MMA in June But He Has Dropped Many Hints That He Plans to Compete Again

McGregor returned to the Octagon in January 2020 after a hiatus that lasted more than a year. When he returned, Notorious made it clear that he wanted to compete three times. His fight plans were derailed by COVID-19, however.

In early June, after Amanda Nunes defended her featherweight title at UFC 251, McGregor took to Twitter to announce his retirement from MMA. McGregor cited many reasons for making the decision, including his lack of excitement at potential opponents.

It was Notorious’ third time retiring in four years. Since then, there has been no shortage of speculation about McGregor’s potential return to the Octagon. The Irishman has also fueled speculation by dropping hints on social media.

For example, on McGregor’s birthday on July 14, Notorious shared a photo on Instagram of himself holding a cellphone to his ear. In the caption of the post, the Irishman wrote: “Stay Ready.”

Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao wished McGregor a happy birthday on Twitter, and McGregor answered: “Thank you Emmanuel, 170.” Notorious has competed at 170 pounds three times in his MMA career, and the response by McGregor was perceived by many as a callout.

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