Artem Lobov believes the biggest rematch in MMA history could be made in 2026.
Conor McGregor‘s old training partner watched from cageside as the Irishman was choked out by Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October 2018.
The 29-0 Russian killed rematch talk when he retired after beating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in October 2020.
Five years later, ‘The Eagle’ has shown no interest in making a comeback. Still, Artem Lobov believes Khabib Nurmagomedov would jump at the chance to face his biggest rival if he were fully fit and back to his best after years of inactivity.
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Artem Lobov talks Conor McGregor vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov 2
McGregor hasn’t fought since breaking his leg during a trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.
However, his career as a top MMA fighter pretty much ended when he crossed over to boxing for a $100 million fight with Floyd Mayweather.
Eight years later, McGregor has shown no signs that he will be able to resurrect his UFC career.
Lobov insists that if he can, a massive rematch with Nurmagomedov will quickly become a possibility.
“I would love to see him come back because I feel if he’s at 100 percent, we would be able to bring Khabib back as well,” he told Ariel Helwani.
“I think Khabib would come back for that fight if Conor was 100 percent fit, and making real moves.
“He’d need just one fight. Knock the guy out, and then the whole world will be talking to Khabib and getting him to come back.
“That would be a real comeback fight. That would be a fight for the ages.”
Conor McGregor barely trained for UFC 229
McGregor’s ex-teammate detailed the ‘wrong mindset’ the UFC superstar had before fighting Nurmagomedov.
Lobov, who is currently feuding with McGregor over a business deal gone wrong, claims his former friend only trained twice a week ahead of the biggest fight of his life.
“I know that fight bothers Conor because he didn’t train at all for that fight,” Lobov explained.
“Twice a week, he was training for Khabib. I tried to get him to [Las Vegas] and said ‘We have to do this’, and he told me to f— off, he just didn’t want to do it.
“He was in the wrong mindset, the party mindset. Training twice a week and that’s it. So when I saw the fight, I was like ‘Oh my god, if only you trained four times a week, you probably would’ve beaten him’.
“But imagine him in a full camp and the Conor that fought Eddie Alvarez. Imagine that Conor fighting Khabib. That’s what I want to see.”