Khabib Nurmagomedov now wants to keep mum whenever his rival, Conor McGregor talks about a second instalment to their rivalry.
While on a fighting hiatus, ‘The Notorious’ from Ireland has previously mentioned that he wants a re-run of his UFC 229 encounter with the Russian champion.
The Irishman is expected to return to action on January 18, 2020 at UFC 246 against fellow fan-favourite, Donald Cerrone, as he begins his journey back to title-contention.
McGregor and his camp is confident that the former two-weight champion will soon reclaim his lost glory.
But recapturing the lightweight throne will be a tall order for the rematch-seeking McGregor especially against the undefeated and dominant Nurmagomedov.
Khabib remains spotless in 28 outings. He most recently unified the lightweight titles after making quick work of Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 last September.
Despite McGregor’s desperate calls for a rematch, Khabib feels the Irish star does not want to share the cage with him again.
Earn It
In a recent Q and A with schoolchildren in Russia, Nurmagomedov said McGregor has to win at least 10 fights before earning another shot at the lightweight title.
“Honestly I don’t think he wants that fight,” Khabib stressed, (transcript from RT Sport).
“How is that so? I beat him up for four rounds. I beat him and choked him and he tapped. It was a sign he didn’t want to be there, ‘let me go please’ and all that.”
“And now he wants the rematch.”
”First of all he has to earn it. We’re in the fourth year since his last victory.”
Recalling his journey to the top, Khabib said he made things happen by actions and not by consistently running his mouth.
“It’s been three years and now we’re in the fourth. In order to fight for the title I had to win 10 fights in a row in the UFC. That’s not counting the 16 victories I had outside the UFC.”
“In every fight I earned it not with my mouth but with my actions. That’s where we’re different — he talks about it, I just do it.”
Not Paying Attention
Khabib did not minced his words and called McGregor ‘an idiot’ who keeps on talking.
From now on, the lightweight champion wants to stay quiet whenever the Irishman brings up the idea of fighting him.
“It’s nice for me, because even when I keep quiet and even when I don’t say anything people can weigh it up for themselves.”
“Hang on, this guy talks and this guy just acts’. Just talking is one thing, but when it comes to doing it, he’s completely different.”
“So for me there are no kind of announcements or insults. He’s an idiot. We don’t pay attention to idiots,” he ended.
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(Featured Image Source: Instagram/ Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov