Conor McGregor’s Coach Would ‘Almost Bet Anything’ This Fight Happens In 2018

Want to see Conor McGregor fight Khabib Nurmagomedov?

Well, you’re in luck.

McGregor’s longtime coach, John Kavanagh, said over the weekend in a sitdown chat with MMA analyst Robin Black that he believes The Notorious will square off with The Eagle before the end of 2018.

“It’s the obvious fight, as his coach and as a fan,” Kavanagh said. “As a fan of MMA, it’s the fight I want to see as well. I would almost bet anything — almost bet anything — that fight happens before the end of the year.”

McGregor and Nurmagomedov have long been on a collision course, but their rivalry reached a new level in April when McGregor and his crew attacked a bus that Nurmagomedov was on after UFC 223 Media Day. McGregor fired a dolly at the bus amid the chaos, breaking a window and injuring fighters inside.

The incident resulted in legal trouble for McGregor. It also ticked off UFC president Dana White. But McGregor remains the promotion’s most popular fighter, and a bout featuring him and Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title seems inevitable, especially with Kavanagh’s vote of confidence.

“I can’t imagine it not happening,” Kavanagh said.

McGregor, who faced Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a boxing match last August, hasn’t fought in UFC since defeating Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in November 2016. His victory over Alvarez made him a two-division champion — featherweight and lightweight — but he since has relinquished both belts due to his absence, with Nurmagomedov securing the vacant lightweight title with a win over Al Iaquinta at UFC 223.