UFC announced Tony/Khabib will NOT be for the REAL belt at UFC 223. Press conference this FRIDAY.

[Sakuraba7]

Ofc he will fight. It's his job.

He is trying to fight the least times, for the most money.

I still believe he will challenge a WW before he challenges Khabib.

But rest assured, Conor will fight 2-3 more times at least in the next 2 years.

My prediction for Conors future is as follows :

1. Fights GSP and loses
2. Fights Khabib and probably loses - if he wins, he will retire at this point or try another boxing/skiing/skating thing
3. Fights Nate as a farewell fight and wins... finally

For the Ferguson fans, I'm sorry to tell you but he will never fight him. Ever. You should be glad because Tony will probably get KTFO silly, and this way you can continue imagining the best case scenario

You predicting this down hill skid is precisely why i dont see him going that route. If he ends up fighting Khabib, he'll take the easy fight before that to keep his streak up. Which then comes back to my post (about fighting a Nate/Alvarez type).

 

[Fatal Catro]

So this is all hinging on the fact that Conor might return in September , without any guarantee that he will fight the winner ?.
I mean that's really fucked up and shortsighted right ?.

 

[Sakuraba7]

Conor will avoid the fucking winner, they are just compounding the mess they have already made.

Which is why it makes sense to strip the guy. Creates publicity, sells the NYC card; then sells the Conor card for when he returns against whoever.

Right now this interim belt thing has no publicity among the casual Conor fans. You need to suck that spotlight by stripping him.

 

[Joohnmatrix]

I understand that mcgregor is a classless act but c'mon how does this dickhead have fans?

 

[johncola]

Anyone who cares about this doesn't like MMA

 

[BigDramaShow26]

Conor has the UFC by the nuts. This not a surprise.

 

[Babaganoosh]

lol Conor is so protected. The absolute worst champion ever. Whatever, the two best fighters at LW are fighting so Conor’s meaningless belt is not a big deal.

 

[Sakuraba7]

Interim Championships have no official linage, and an Interim Champion is never referred to as a former champion of the division. So ya, it matters. If Conor isn't fighting till September, then make Ferguson vs Khabib for the real Lightweight Championship.

While i disagree in sentiment, that's precisely how the public sees it.

A Championship title is supposed to be for the guy who is the #1 fighter in his division, which is why he "defends" his title by fighting challenger. If the challenger wins, he becomes the new champ.

With Tony/Khabib, its obvious the winner between these two is the #1 guy; but the Conor nuthuggers will poopoo that as much as possible and try to deny that fact, by pointing out Conor is champ–on paper.

 

[Bobby Boulders]

Conor must give great blow jobs.

If you think this isn't the other way around, you're mistaken.

 

[JuniorSonGoku]

In what way is he being protected?

He'll fight the winner, you know the better of the 2...

Um... By having the guy most likely to beat Conor fight someone first so he's knocked off?

This is not the first time the UFC has done this; it's just smart business from their perspective.

 

[Karp]

That's utter nonsense. The UFC is an absolute joke.

 

[Sakuraba7]

Um... By having the guy most likely to beat Conor fight someone first so he's knocked off?

This is not the first time the UFC has done this; it's just smart business from their perspective.

He's eliminating his contenders by having them eliminate each other off. A champ is supposed to fight the #1 guy then the next #1 or 2 or highest-available guy. He's not doing that. He'll send them (loser of Khabib/Tony) back of the line, while he fights Alvarez again assuming all goes to plan.

 

[Langinbang187]

 

[MM808]

So ridiculous and disappointing what the UFC has become.

 

[GrantB13]

Mother. Fucker.

 

[EnterTheNinja]

“Fuck!! Tom Brady isn’t playing this week”
- Patriots fan

“Shit!! LeBron James is out for 3 weeks!!”
- Cleveland fan

“YES!!!! Conor isn’t going to fight in a cage for 2 years!! He’s the man!!”
- Conor fan

 

[Krixes]

This whole thread..

 

[Fatal Catro]

Um... By having the guy most likely to beat Conor fight someone first so he's knocked off?

This is not the first time the UFC has done this; it's just smart business from their perspective.

That and why are we to believe that Conor will then return and unify , he will likely avoid the winner further.

 

[TheScorpionDude]

You predicting this down hill skid is precisely why i dont see him going that route. If he ends up fighting Khabib, he'll take the easy fight before that to keep his streak up. Which then comes back to my post (about fighting a Nate/Alvarez type).

Here's the thing, the down hill skid is inevitable.

The way I laid it out, in my opinion, is the most effective way to make the most cash.

1. Cause if he loses to Khabib/Tony there is no option for a GSP fight.

If he loses to GSP, enter the 'bigger man' excuse.

2. If he loses to Nate before he fights Khabib then he doesn't have the right to ask for a Khabib fight.

But if he loses to Khabib then he can fall back to the Nate fight cause Nate is not a champ nor a contender.

The road is simple, has a story and excuses lined up... it's perfect. GSP -> Khabib -> Nate. Money, money, money.

 

[blitzk]

we all know it's for the real belt, so who cares.