The most talked about fight in MMA right now is without a doubt Khabib Nurmagomedov in a potential lightweight title match against “The Notorious” Conor McGregor. Because of the hype already surrounding the fight, it could lead to many reading into signs that aren’t there. Over the past week, however, the signs have been stronger than ever without the need of any adjusted reading glasses.
A week ago, Khabib’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz tweeted that after speaking with Khabib, big news was around the bend and that it would result in someone receiving appropriate punishment:
Just talked to my brother @TeamKhabib 59 minutes over the phone. Lots of exciting things coming! Everybody will get punished for their actions. That’s all I got to say.
— Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) May 19, 2018
Conor McGregor officially threw his name into notoriety when he sent the dolly crashing through a UFC bus window, thereby causing two fights on the UFC 223 card to be cancelled due to injuries sustained to Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg during the incident. As Conor McGregor awaits his court date on June 14th, Ali’s tweet could be interpreted as declaring that the justice system’s services will not be needed when an Eagle mauling is on the table as a plea deal orchestrated by the UFC. Earlier today, Conor McGregor may have added another major sign that the fight the MMA world is waiting for is coming:
Keep your dukes up when you see me.
See you soon. pic.twitter.com/M2KX5HZ90F— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 23, 2018
One of the biggest criticisms of Khabib Nurmagomedov in his last performance was that his chin was exposed during his fight with Al Iaquinta, as initiated by Joe Rogan in his commentary on the main event:
“Jimmy, you are so right about Nurmagomedov’s chin. I mean, it is up in the air. And he’s pulling back straight, leaning back with his weight past his hips. The way he’s pulling back with his chin up is very amateurish. This is not what you want to see from a guy who’s the most threatening lightweight in the world. You want to see a full game.”
Conor McGregor’s tweet, advising the reader to keep their dukes up could be Conor McGregor giving the new lightweight champion a helpful tip to correct the “amateurish” flaws in his standup, because he expects to see Khabib “soon.” The timing of the tweet, coming less than a week after Ali Abdelaziz’s tweet, seems to point to legitimate signs of a Khabib/Conor fight and not baseless hoopla. Still, until the fight announcement is made and until Conor is free to fight again by the legal system and the New York State Athletic Commission, it will remain speculation. But with these recent developments, it has certainly moved past wishful thinking.
What do you think? Are we going to see Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Conor McGregor This Year?