Owen Roddy discusses the possibility of Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Conor McGregor II
SBG Ireland coach Owen Roddy believes that a rematch between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov should happen because McGregor is an entirely different fighter now than from the time of their first encounter.
Roddy, a striking coach, has been involved with SBG for almost two decades and is one of McGregor's primary trainers. He was part of McGregor's team in The Ultimate Fighter 22 and has always been with 'The Notorious' since he joined the UFC back in 2013.
In an interview with The Mac Life YouTube channel, the coach talked about his pupil's moment and how exciting a rematch with retired champion Nurmagomedov would be.
"And, yeah, I think [that it would be a shame if they didn't fight]. But Khabib, at the moment, has made his mind up, you know? And he seems like he is already focusing on other things. It is a shame that we don't get to see the rematch because, you know, Conor now is a completely different animal, and he is in a better place, so I definitely think it would be a very, very different fight," said Roddy. "But, you know, you don't spend the time worrying about things that have happened or things that haven't happened. There's plenty of fights there for Conor. Poirier is a cracking fight, and then whoever else after that. So, if he doesn't come back... It is what it is. I'm sure there's going to be a line of people that want to fight Conor. Conor will never be short of fights anyway, and he will never be short of a rivalry. People are always at him, so, yeah, I'm just excited to see him fighting Poirier and then see what happens after that."
Owen Roddy says the trilogy fight with Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz is possible
In the same interview, SBG Ireland head coach Owen Roddy spoke about whether another duel between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz is possible.
The two UFC stars have faced each other twice, and the trilogy has been long rumored and expected by UFC fans. With one victory each, Diaz and McGregor need to enter the octagon once more to define who is the best fighter.
"'The cracker,' it will be a cracker. Conor says he always wants it, and yeah, geez, potentially, you know. I think I would like to see Diaz in there again with somebody [else] before it happens," said Roddy. "Now, whether Diaz does that or no, I don't know, but you know who would not want to see that fight? It is an amazing fight. The fans would like that; I know that Conor has said he would love to do it again, and I don't know whether Diaz has said [if] he would like to do it again. But yeah, potentially that could be a big one."
However, the most likely path that McGregor will follow in 2021 is the one that leads him to a UFC lightweight title fight - if he beats Dustin Poirier in UFC 257. For a fight with Diaz, McGregor would have to gain some weight to fight at 170 lb.
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