What's the story?
Dillon Danis, Conor McGregor’s jiu-jitsu training partner and coach claims that the Irishman can pick apart Khabib Nurmagomedov in under two rounds. Danis believes that McGregor's striking intensity can overwhelm his opponent more than Khabib's grappling.
Making his remarks prior to a potential fight, Danis said that the Russian would be easily defeated if he faces McGregor, provided he gets past Ferguson.
Danis said, “If you saw in the Michael Johnson fight, he was getting wobbled and rocked every time they were on the feet. So Conor is going to pick him apart like he does all the wrestlers. He hits you from everywhere and he kicks you in the stomach. And people don’t see those shots on TV, like some of those deep kicks and some of the kicks to the stomach, but those take the wind out of you.”
In case you didn’t know...
The UFC officially announced the matchup between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson for the interim lightweight championship, which means that the winner of the co-main event of UFC 209, will be in line for a shot at the UFC Lightweight Champion, Conor Mcgregor.
The heart of the matter
In light of the possible matchup between Nurmagomedov and Mcgregor, speaking to Submission Radio, Dillion Danis explained how McGregor would beat his Russian opponent: “And when you basically have to take someone down, it puts a different kind of feeling in your stomach and in your gut when you have to take the guy down.
“The guy’s beating you up on the feet, and when you go to the ground he’s elbowing you. So I think Conor puts him away in probably one or two rounds with strikes,” said McGregor’s jiu-jitsu coach.
What’s next?
Danis, a training partner of McGregor’s, is looking for his own route into the UFC, and has claimed that he could also beat Nurmagomedov if a future brawl was to take place.
Before a possible fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov, the Russian will have to first defeat Tony Ferguson, to get a shot at the Irishman.
Sportskeeda’s take
While many think the grappling and wrestling of Nurmagomedov will overpower McGregor, fans need to keep in mind that the Irish fighter has taken apart prominent wrestlers on his way to becoming a UFC champion.
Stylistically, it is a very good matchup, but McGregor's striking ability could possibly overwhelm Khabib, like it has done to so many fighters before him.
