‘I am sure Conor will beat Khabib in rematch’: Artem Lobov says McGregor wasn't prepared for UFC 229 fight with Nurmagomedov

Conor McGregor's friend and long time sparring partner Artem Lobov says that the Irish fighter was more focused on his business ahead of the UFC 229 fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov, but will be victorious should they meet again.

It's not a secret that a rematch with Nurmagomedov is one of the top priorities for the former double champ. At least fight wise. McGregor started hyping up the bout almost right after his four round submission loss in October 2018. 

READ MORE: McGregor calls Khabib a ‘scurrying rat’, gets reminded of own ‘embarrassment’ in Twitter spat

A new wave of trashtalk came following the UFC 249 interim lightweight title bout between Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje, which saw the latter ending El Cucuy's winning streak in a dominant fashion. The result not only ruined the dreams of fight fans to finally see Khabib fighting Ferguson, but also created a situation in which both interim and undisputed champions are represented by the same management company. Will it stop the UFC from putting them in the cage, given the conflict of interests? Hard to tell. But it's a perfect chance for McGregor to get in the line. 

“Super excited for the LW Title bout in July!” he tweeted on Tuesday, leaving room for speculation. His teammate Lobov is meanwhile confident that The Notorious will beat Nurmagomedov in a rematch.

“(Conor) just needs proper preparation. Back then he had a two-year MMA hiatus, and his previous fight was in boxing. No proper preparation,”  said the Russian Irish fighter, when talking in Russian to Sport Express.

“He was focused on business. When one has a whiskey company, which has to be developed it's hard to train. By the way the company is already estimated in nearly one billion dollars. Business takes time. On one hand – whiskey, clothing line on other, plus you have to train, plus family, kids. To be fair he didn't take Khabib seriously at that time. 

“If we'll train for 6 months, like we did ahead of (Nate) Diaz fight, it will be much easier for Conor. It's not like I think he'll have a chance. I am confident in his victory, if there will be proper preparation,”  concluded Lobov.