Conor McGregor vs Khabib: Coach reveals key training detail after UFC grudge match is set
CONOR MCGREGOR - John Kavanagh has revealed that Conor McGregor is hard at work ahead of his return to the Octagon.
McGregor will make his long-awaited return to the Octagon this October in the main event of UFC 229, which takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The former UFC lightweight champion will be welcomed back to the cage by his successor at the summit of the stacked 155lbs division, the undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov.
McGregor's encounter with Nurmagomedov will see him take on arguably the best grappler on the UFC roster.
And in the eyes of many, Nurmagomedov's relentless grappling is McGregor's kryptonite.
Team McGregor are more than aware of the tough task ahead of them and have taken appropriate action to prepare 'The Notorious' for Nurmagomedov, bringing in Moldovan wrestler Kosti Gnusariov to work on his takedown defence.
And Kavanagh last night showed on Instagram that McGregor is hard at work with Gnusariov and his wrestling coach Sergey Pikulskiy, who worked with the Moldovan national wrestling team for seven years.
The SBG Ireland head coach uploaded a picture of himself, McGregor, Gnusariov, Pikulskiy and Peter Queally with the accompanying caption: "Nine weeks."
Conor McGregor to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229
Nine weeks
Kavanagh followed up that post by updating his Instagram story with a picture of McGregor fending off a single-leg takedown.
To many, McGregor's grudge match with Nurmagomedov is the epitome of the traditional striker versus grappler match-up, a notion Kavanagh agrees with.
“It’s a cliche to say, but it’s a classic striker versus grappler,” Kavanagh told ESPN. “Khabib needs to get into that clinch, join his hands and start chaining his takedowns together. Obviously, we need to try and prevent that.
“I think a lot of people are so afraid of Khabib’s grappling, they don’t engage with him. Conor is a good grappler.
“I know that will get a lot of people upset when I say that, but watch his fights. There’s plenty of evidence to support that claim.
“I’m feeling and he’s feeling confident, wherever the fight goes. But the left hand will be the difference in the fight.”
Nurmagomedov vs McGregor is without a doubt the biggest fight mixed martial arts and UFC history.
UFC president Dana White agrees with that notion and is anticipating a monumental spectacle.
"It's a massive fight," White told Fox Sports. "I knew this was the fight to make. And I believe that this the biggest fight in the history of the company, other than the Mayweather fight. This thing is going to be massive."