CALLED OUT
Conor McGregor ‘has no business being in octagon’ with Islam Makhachev, claims ESPN star Stephen A. Smith
McGregor is making his return to the octagon for the first time in three years
STEPHEN A. Smith doesn't want to see Conor McGregor get in the ring against lightweight champ Islam Makhachev.
Makhachev's coach said he would like his fighter to take on McGregor at some point in the future.
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McGregor called out Makhachev before his UFC 302 bout against Dustin Poirier to defend his lightweight title.
Makhachev was dealing with a staph infection during his training for the fight, and McGregor made sure the world knew about it.
Still, the lightweight champ submitted Poirier to retain his title in the main event.
McGregor is set to make his UFC return on June 29 against Michael Chandler in the main event of UFC 303.
There is a lot of speculation that he could be in for a title shot if he wins the match.
Javier Mendez, Makhachev's coach, said he wants to see McGregor win so he can fight his guy.
"Conor goes and starts on a rant, starting to create drama with Islam," Mendez told Red Corner MMA.
"Which is kind of good because Conor’s the kind of guy you want to root against or root for. Regardless, everybody wants to see him, Me, I want to see him get beat by Islam.
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"So, for me, him doing what he’s doing is causing a lot of attention, so there wouldn’t be nothing better for me and Khabib (Nurmagomedov) than to have Islam have a fight with him somewhere down the line.
"He brought that staph up, which is very observant on his part, to be honest with you. The only thing is that he observed it way too late.
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"At the time he mentioned it, it was already three weeks past."
While Mendez wants to see McGregor get in the ring against Makhachev, not everyone is in favor of the potential bout.
Stephen A. Smith is one of those against the fight, recalling how McGregor fared against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
"I was in Vegas for the Conor McGregor-Khabib Nurmagomedov fight," Stephen A. said on First Take.
"It was one of the greatest events I’ve ever attended in my life. It was unreal.
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"But what we learned in that fight is that Conor McGregor has no business being in the octagon against a grappler, which is what Makhachev (is).
"This brother right here is something special, and he’s not going to try and strike against Conor McGregor."
McGregor still has to win his bout against Chandler to get a potentil shot at Makhachev.
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He hasn't competed since Poirier vs McGregor 3, in which he suffered a TKO due to a doctor's stoppage.
That fight was three years ago in June of 2021.
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