Andrew Ravens
Conor McGregor has used UFC 329 fight week to take another swing at Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s legacy, dismissing the undefeated former lightweight champion’s body of work entirely and ranking Islam Makhachev above him in the greatest fighters of all time conversation. Speaking to Complex, McGregor was characteristically unfiltered in his assessment.
“The guy has done nothing in the sport,” McGregor said. “Thirteen fights he’s had in the company, that’s it, and three against ‘name’ opponents. He had a fight with me. I was off the yacht. I was doing bad things on a yacht. I was partying heavily, and I was up to my eyeballs in court cases and all of this. I hadn’t fought in two years. I was worth $200 million, and I come back and fight this f–king guy.
“I did four rounds with him. I had a broken toe. I’m sure you’ve seen the Netflix show where I broke my f–king foot three weeks before the bout. This guy’s nothing. Then where is he now? He’s gone. So I don’t rate him at all. No courage. The man has no courage. The man has succumbed to his pain, and it is a damn shame. I have nothing to say to him, nothing to say about him. I don’t rate him.”
Conor McGregor says Islam Makhachev is above Khabib Nurmagomedov in all-time UFC rankings
In Nurmagomedov’s place, McGregor elevated Makhachev — Khabib’s teammate and successor as lightweight champion — above him in his personal ranking.
“He’s above Khabib,” McGregor said. “Finishes, body of work, both divisions. For sure, he is. Still in it, still at it. People are impressionable when talking to him to get out of it. There’s a lot left in that boy, and he should recognize that and keep going. I have him above both his teammates.”
McGregor was submitted by Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in their lightweight title fight, which remains the highest-selling pay-per-view in UFC history. McGregor returns Saturday to face Max Holloway in the UFC 329 welterweight main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, streaming on Paramount+.
