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What's the story?
UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has stated that he considers Dustin Poirier a tougher opponent than Conor McGregor.
During a recent conference call, Khabib compared the two lightweight contenders, saying:
"I think maybe right now Dustin is a more complete MMA fighter than him. Because he beat a lot of good guys in the lightweight division and I don’t remember when Conor won in the lightweight division."
"I think he only beat [Eddie] Alvarez and he has only one win in the lightweight division in a long, long time."
In case you didn't know...
Khabib defeated Conor with relative ease when they faced off at UFC 229 last year, however it seems that the Dagestani champion can't complete an interview without McGregor being mentioned. Just last week Khabib made the sensational claim that he would be willing to serve time in jail just to get his hands on Conor.
The heart of the matter
It is inevitable that Nurmagomedov and McGregor will enter the cage together at some point in the future; the public interest is too high and the rivalry is too real for the UFC to ignore.
Khabib was clearly very complimentary about Poirier's abilities though. However, with UFC 242 just around the corner, Nurmagomedov would be wise to keep his mind entirely focused on Poirier without allowing McGregor to cloud his thoughts.
What's next?
Khabib Nurmagomedov and Dustin Poirier will battle for the UFC lightweight belt in the main event of UFC 242 this weekend in what promises to be an explosive encounter.
On the other hand, no-one really knows what is next for McGregor. The Irishman vowed to make a comeback just last week, but no official announcement has been made and none is expected in the imminent future.
It is entirely likely that Conor's next move will be determined by the outcome of the Khabib and Poirier fight this weekend.
