Conor McGregor’s first Octagon appearance in more than a year will be at welterweight, but if is successful, a lightweight title shot could be next for the Irish star.
McGregor will square off with Donald Cerrone in a 170-pound bout at UFC 246 on Jan. 18, and reigning lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov will face Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 on April 18.
“If Conor can get through ‘Cowboy’ and if Khabib can get through Tony, then we’d be looking at a rematch between Conor and Khabib down the line here pretty soon,” UFC president Dana White told BT Sport in a recent interview.
That statement drew the ire of lightweight contender Justin Gaethje, who called the notion a “crock of s—t” on Twitter. Gaethje has been vocal in calling out McGregor in recent months. The former World Series of Fighting champion is not currently booked against an opponent.
Lol at @danawhite “if Conor gets through Cowboy”… what a crock of shit. https://t.co/R07b0P40o5
— Justin Gaethje (@Justin_Gaethje) December 11, 2019
White’s interest in a Nurmagomedov-McGregor rematch is simple: Their first meeting is estimated as the largest selling pay-per-view in promotion history. Since the UFC signed a deal with ESPN to be its sole PPV provider, the promotion is not as dependent on buys as it was in the past, but Nurmagomedov vs. McGregor would nonetheless be big business.
Gaethje, meanwhile, has bounced back from the first two defeats of his professional career to post successive first-round KO/TKO finishes of James Vick, Edson Barboza and Cerrone.