UFC president Dana White has stated in a new interview that a fight between interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov could be on the cards next.
White appears to still be unsure as to when current champion Conor McGregor might return to defend his title, but whether it’s sooner or later, it seems he still like the idea of having Ferguson and Nurmagomedov fight first.
“As long as Conor is willing to fight by March, we could do Khabib vs. Tony … and then the winner fights Conor for the title,” White told Yahoo! Sports. “Or, if Conor wants to sit out until next fall, then we’d have to make Khabib vs. Tony for the title – not the interim title.”
That last suggestion is particularly interesting as it sounds as if White is warning McGregor that if he sits out for too much longer that they will strip him of the title.
For his part, McGregor has indicated recently that his preferred option would be to defend the title next, but there’s no indication of what his timeframe is for returning, and he’s also made it clear that the UFC will have to pay him a small fortune before he would step back into the Octagon.
Meanwhile, if Ferguson Vs Nurmagomedov does go ahead then it would be an incredible fight, with both men currently riding 10-fight winning streaks, but the stakes would be enormous given that the loser would miss out on the money-spinning title unification bout with McGregor that would surely follow on from it.
