You Can Now Bet on Khabib to Fight Conor McGregor and the Odds are Pretty Good…
Unless you have been hiding under a rock you’ll know that Khabib Nurmagamedov and Conor McGregor are now bigger rivals than Batman and the Joker. Neither can exist without the other and all that jazz. With Khabib finally at the top of the lightweight division, having stolen Conor’s crown, the next obvious step is to make them fight each other.
Nurmagamedov won the UFC lightweight title in Brooklyn last weekend, at UFC 223. It was a mental week for the Dagestani fighter. Both Tony Ferguson and his replacement Max Holloway were medically unfit to fight. The UFC scrambled to find their rising star a new opponent, as they considered Anthony Pettis, Paul Felder, and finally Al Iaquinta.
On the night, Khabib put in a dominant performance over his game opponent. Conor McGregor could be next. If throwing a dolly through a bus window at your rival’s head doesn’t earn you a fight, then what will? Well, betting odds have been released, and Khabib will be fancying his chances.
Khabib to Win
It will come to no surprise to diehard MMA fans that Khabib is an overwhelming favorite to beat McGregor in a potential fight. The unbeaten Russian has been set at -165 by oddsmaker Joey Odessa, with McGregor the underdog at +135. That basically means a $100 winning bet on Khabib would earn you a cool $60 profit.
Khabib truly has been a phenomenon since he entered the UFC. He’s on a 10-fight winning streak within the organization and has a sensational 26-0 overall record. It’s pretty much unheard of at this level. The most insane thing is that apart from one hard punch by Michael Johnson, he’s never been in difficulty.
Kryptonite
He’s also regarded as a very bad opponent for McGregor, as the above odds show you. The ‘Notorious’ has proven that he struggles against top-level grapplers. The likes of Chad Mendes and Nate Diaz have been able to assert their will against him in the past.
However, on the feet, it is a different story. True, Nurmagamedov has taken down some very dangerous strikers, but McGregor’s left-hand swings like Thor’s hammer. He’s also very slick with unorthodox movement. If he takes a leaf out of Iaquinta’s book and prevents Khabib from taking him down, it could be very interesting.
Even Worse
The odds for a fight against Tony Ferguson are also very interesting. “El Cucuy” is an even bigger underdog than McGregor at +165. A $100 winning bet on Ferguson would earn you $165. That’s not bad considering how dangerous Ferguson can be. He’s very effective off his back, which would be fascinating to see against Khabib’s ground game.
Whoever Khabib fights next the pressure is on him to win now. The new lightweight champion still has his toughest tests to come. The likes of McGregor and Ferguson are at an elite level above the opponents he has faced so far. If he keeps going though, it’s hard to see the UFC’s first Russian champion ever losing.
