Official Conor McGregor thread (part 5) *Read Mod Note in Post 1*

Tazzimus

yourdeadwright wrote: »

Khabib takes him down round one after about 20 seconds and the stays on top for the whole round,
Same thing round 2 but finishes him near the end of the round, .
Conor will not keep Khabib off him,

Highly possible, however Conor has exceptional spacial awareness and is very quick in those first 8-9 minutes.
If he can keep Khabibs hands off him, he'll punish him for trying his usual bullrush takedowns.

If he can land one early though, he'll suck the absolute life out of Conor.

Paully D

yourdeadwright wrote: »

Khabib takes him down round one after about 20 seconds and the stays on top for the whole round,
Same thing round 2 but finishes him near the end of the round, .
Conor will not keep Khabib off him,

Khabib will want to have improved his takedown entries exceptionally for that to happen IMO.

There’s no doubt in my mind that he gets clipped, badly, on his first shot if he hasn’t.

riffmongous

I could actually see the fight itself being boring as hell with both of them afraid to go near each other and waiting for the other to make the first move

Also I know people mightn't want to hear it but Conor's Da got roasted to f'ck last night on memes pages, if you like the simpsons you should check them out

yourdeadwright

Paully D wrote: »

yourdeadwright wrote: »

Khabib takes him down round one after about 20 seconds and the stays on top for the whole round,
Same thing round 2 but finishes him near the end of the round, .
Conor will not keep Khabib off him,

Khabib will want to have improved his takedown entries exceptionally for that to happen IMO.

There’s no doubt in my mind that he gets clipped, badly, on his first shot if he hasn’t.

Conor will be mauled, Khabib has so many ways to get him down,

yourdeadwright

Paully D wrote: »

yourdeadwright wrote: »

Khabib takes him down round one after about 20 seconds and the stays on top for the whole round,
Same thing round 2 but finishes him near the end of the round, .
Conor will not keep Khabib off him,

Khabib will want to have improved his takedown entries exceptionally for that to happen IMO.

There’s no doubt in my mind that he gets clipped, badly, on his first shot if he hasn’t.

Conor will be mauled, Khabib has so many ways to get him down,

Boom_Bap

yourdeadwright wrote: »

Conor will be mauled, Khabib has so many ways to get him down,

Does he though? I see him doing the same takedown over and over again. I'm sure people see it in tapes as well and try to combat it but fail to do so.

Fromvert

riffmongous wrote: »

I could actually see the fight itself being boring as hell with both of them afraid to go near each other and waiting for the other to make the first move

Also I know people mightn't want to hear it but Conor's Da got roasted to f'ck last night on memes pages, if you like the simpsons you should check them out

Not engaging just isn't McGregor or Khabib's style, both fighters style is at it's best when they have their opponent stuck on the cage. Someone will have to blink which if why I look forward to the first exchange.

The more I see of Khabib the more I think McGregor KO's him. Dominates but doesn't finish, footwork is sloppy and leaves himself open when he goes to grapple. McGregor only needs to land a couple (sometimes one will do!) to have Khabib hurt and game plan forgot about and I think he'll have enough chances to land what he needs. This fight better happen!

Mellor

At time, Poirer's jiu jitsu was going to be too much, and Chad's wrestling, then Eddie's wrestling, etc. Worth remembering imo.

I'm not saying that Khabib won't get him down, or that Conor will definitely win. I'm well aware that Khabib is a better grappler than all of the above. I'm just pointing out than Conor's ability to find the chin has been written off everytime. Seem's silly to do it again.

slicus ricus

Mellor wrote: »

At time, Poirer's jiu jitsu was going to be too much, and Chad's wrestling, then Eddie's wrestling, etc. Worth remembering imo.

I'm not saying that Khabib won't get him down, or that Conor will definitely win. I'm well aware that Khabib is a better grappler than all of the above. I'm just pointing out than Conor's ability to find the chin has been written off everytime. Seem's silly to do it again.

This is all true.

What I'm wondering is whether or not Khabib has really been tested against a striker like Conor before? I know he's faced guys like Barboza and Dos Anjos who can bang but has he ever dealt with anyone with distance control and ability to KO on the back foot like McGregor? For what it's worth, Eddie Alvarez said he didn't even see half of Conor's combos coming and only knew about them when he was on the floor.

dulux99

McGregor was favourite vs Porieir, Mendes and Alvarez but isn't this time and for good reason. If you could design a fighter on paper to beat McGregor you'd come out with Khabib. Bookies have khabib at 8/15 which I think is fair. Mcgregor has a solid chance against him but based on everything we've seen to date Khabib should be favourite. Mcgregor at LW has been incredible though. Its a f*cking brilliant fight and hopefully we see it this year.

rob316

I just cant see White paying him what he wants. Even £50m in an MMA fight is a massive stretch. He isn't going to draw much more than 1.5m buys fighting Khabib.

martyos121

rob316 wrote: »

I just cant see White paying him what he wants. Even £50m in an MMA fight is a massive stretch. He isn't going to draw much more than 1.5m buys fighting Khabib.

Pre-Mayweather, I would’ve agreed with you. It’s a different story now though, his fame has increased massively over in the states since that whole circus went down, and that’s impressive given how big a name he was before it. There’s going to be a lot more casuals tuning in for his next MMA fight than there has been previously, and if you combine that with the UFC hype machine milking their biggest cash cow after a two year layoff, I’d expect it to pass 2 million buys with ease, but I honestly think it’ll go closer to 3.

He’s in a strong negotiating position, not as strong as he was before the bus smashing, but still able to make pretty big demands. They only have Brock now, Jones won’t fight again for a long time (if ever again) and Rousey is almost certainly done with MMA too. They need him, he doesn’t need them, so if he fights in the octagon again, he’ll be paid accordingly.

Just my take on things, very hard to predict anything involving McGregor or the UFC these days.

Inviere

Lads, it's a fracking breath of fresh air to be reading about this stuff, thank you all! :D

Curious though re the above comment about the bus incident, how does that weaken his negotiating position? I'd have thought infamy and the prospect of further PPV's only strengthens it?

martyos121

Inviere wrote: »

Lads, it's a fracking breath of fresh air to be reading about this stuff, thank you all! :D

Curious though re the above comment about the bus incident, how does that weaken his negotiating position? I'd have thought infamy and the prospect of further PPV's only strengthens it?

You could look at it that way. I just think actually appearing in an American court trying to bargain down a felony charge to a misdemeanour crosses the line from notoriety to thuggery and would tarnish his image slightly. That’s assuming the case goes well for him, if it doesn’t (unlikely, IMO), he might not have a big fight to negotiate.

rob316

martyos121 wrote: »

Pre-Mayweather, I would’ve agreed with you. It’s a different story now though, his fame has increased massively over in the states since that whole circus went down, and that’s impressive given how big a name he was before it. There’s going to be a lot more casuals tuning in for his next MMA fight than there has been previously, and if you combine that with the UFC hype machine milking their biggest cash cow after a two year layoff, I’d expect it to pass 2 million buys with ease, but I honestly think it’ll go closer to 3.

He’s in a strong negotiating position, not as strong as he was before the bus smashing, but still able to make pretty big demands. They only have Brock now, Jones won’t fight again for a long time (if ever again) and Rousey is almost certainly done with MMA too. They need him, he doesn’t need them, so if he fights in the octagon again, he’ll be paid accordingly.

Just my take on things, very hard to predict anything involving McGregor or the UFC these days.

2 million would be my guess it would do.

I agree with you though they are screwed for a star name currently, the PPV numbers are proof of that. I think they are trying to push Till as quick as possible but he hasn't even fought on a PPV yet and isnt as brash as Conor. The scouse accent will go down like lead balloon in the US too.

UFC need him alot more than he needs them. Its going to take alot to get Conor back in there.

dashoonage

if it goes bad and he does time i hear they are going to reboot the Undisputed series.

Axwell

Inviere wrote: »

Lads, it's a fracking breath of fresh air to be reading about this stuff, thank you all! :D

Curious though re the above comment about the bus incident, how does that weaken his negotiating position? I'd have thought infamy and the prospect of further PPV's only strengthens it?

I don't think it will affect his position much at all but at the end of the day he is a fighter in the UFC, as such he represents them his employer and his incident with the bus put both him and the company in a bad light. While his popularity is without question and the draw he would have, the UFC could easily say it wasn't the kind of publicity they wanted (court cases and lawyers etc) on top of the potential injuries to other fighters which could have been a legal nightmare in itself for the UFC. So his actions and wreckless behaviour might find the UFC using that as a reason to try and low ball him on the ridiculous figures he would have walked in demanding previously.

martyos121

dashoonage wrote: »

if it goes bad and he does time i hear they are going to reboot the Undisputed series.

They’re also going to make a follow up to Fight Night Champion. Same story, but MMA instead of boxing. Anyone who’s played it knows what I’m getting at.

All_in_Flynn

Axwell wrote: »

I don't think it will affect his position much at all but at the end of the day he is a fighter in the UFC, as such he represents them his employer and his incident with the bus put both him and the company in a bad light. While his popularity is without question and the draw he would have, the UFC could easily say it wasn't the kind of publicity they wanted (court cases and lawyers etc) on top of the potential injuries to other fighters which could have been a legal nightmare in itself for the UFC. So his actions and wreckless behaviour might find the UFC using that as a reason to try and low ball him on the ridiculous figures he would have walked in demanding previously.

I also think Conor will be feeling quite contrite about what happened too. I know he loves money but I reckon he will feel he owes Dana etc. and won’t demand silly money. He’ll still be looking for record ufc money but I don’t think he will hold them to ransom and demand something silly.

pastorbarrett

Couple of points maybe pertinent to Conor/Khabib match-up...

- when was the last time Khabib gave up a round
(even accounting for inactivity it's an impressive stat) I think folk need to remember despite the sloppy stand up, it's really a means to an end to initiate and chain arguably the sports most dominating ground game.

- Like Diaz, he won't have a psychological headstart on Khabib, another factor worth considering. Mcgregor potentially even at a deficit here come fight night

The first round will be lightening. All will be revealed in the first exchanges considering their respective skillsets.

spix

Conor will win as long as its a yesmenless training camp

dulux99

The UFC are announcing fights for MSG thick and fast - I wonder are they putting the building blocks in place for McGregor vs Khabib announcement once his court issues are sorted out. Hopefully not as I'm hoping to travel to Vegas in October if they hold the fight there. NYC is just so much more expensive but it makes sense to have the fight there.

All_in_Flynn

dulux99 wrote: »

The UFC are announcing fights for MSG thick and fast - I wonder are they putting the building blocks in place for McGregor vs Khabib announcement once his court issues are sorted out. Hopefully not as I'm hoping to travel to Vegas in October if they hold the fight there. NYC is just so much more expensive but it makes sense to have the fight there.

Might be a silly question but will the NYSAC sanction him to fight there so soon after the court case?

Also, what date is the UFC card in New York?

chopperbyrne

If it's in the US, it will be in Vegas. Not a hope a fight that big will be anywhere else. If Conor gets a conviction with a suspended sentence and loses his visa, it'll be in Russia at a time to suit US PPV audiences.

Oh, and Conor by KO inside three minutes.

dulux99

chopperbyrne wrote: »

If it's in the US, it will be in Vegas. Not a hope a fight that big will be anywhere else. If Conor gets a conviction with a suspended sentence and loses his visa, it'll be in Russia at a time to suit US PPV audiences.

Oh, and Conor by KO inside three minutes.

The UFCs biggest fights of 2017 and 2016 were held in NYC. It's not that much of a sure thing that McG v Khabib will be in Vegas imo.

HappyAsLarE

I remember reading a quote from Khabib where he said McGregor cant get a licence to fight in New York.

hewhoscares

I think Khabib Conor will break the UFC PPV record. But overall the PPV model seems to be down, and a huge as his celebrity is now mind. I dont see 3m there.

If he starches Khabib and then goes for GSP after that - GSP has the name value that Khabib doesn't to a whole generation of casual sports fans and that I could see as a huge fight tipping to 3m.

I don't think his absense will have done his numbers any harm - Didn't do Mayweather any damage anyway after his post Hatton 'retirement'

The Khabib fight is classic MMA with both having clear advantages in certain areas - and a case of who can impose those on a fight. Longer than 2 rounds and you'd have to favour Khabib with how draining being controlled like he does is.

hewhoscares

dulux99 wrote: »

chopperbyrne wrote: »

If it's in the US, it will be in Vegas. Not a hope a fight that big will be anywhere else. If Conor gets a conviction with a suspended sentence and loses his visa, it'll be in Russia at a time to suit US PPV audiences.

Oh, and Conor by KO inside three minutes.

The UFCs biggest fights of 2017 and 2016 were held in NYC. It's not that much of a sure thing that McG v Khabib will be in Vegas imo.

The taxes for the fighter are much higher in NYC aren't they? And as much as NYC added access to media will have helped with those great PPV numbers, more so having McGregor and GSP headlining will have been the defining factor.

McGregors got serious leverage with the UFC as well, so if Vegas means a bigger take home purse and a 6-7 figure difference.

Mellor

rob316 wrote: »

I just cant see White paying him what he wants. Even £50m in an MMA fight is a massive stretch. He isn't going to draw much more than 1.5m buys fighting Khabib.

I'd be surprised if he was asking for $50m. But who knows. He adds massive value to a PPV.

pastorbarrett wrote: »

Couple of points maybe pertinent to Conor/Khabib match-up...

- when was the last time Khabib gave up a round
(even accounting for inactivity it's an impressive stat)

Officially he has never lost a round in the UFC.
Realistically, it was 6 years ago.

VW 1

hewhoscares wrote: »

The taxes for the fighter are much higher in NYC aren't they? And as much as NYC added access to media will have helped with those great PPV numbers, more so having McGregor and GSP headlining will have been the defining factor.

McGregors got serious leverage with the UFC as well, so if Vegas means a bigger take home purse and a 6-7 figure difference.

Mcgregor isn't resident in the US so he will pay any taxes at the marginal rate in Ireland, as determined by his accountant.

I presume Khabib will be subject to US tax laws, not sure if there are rule there around residency in one state and earning in another, i oresume there is.