Dana White Is Already Looking Ahead to Conor McGregor’s Next Fight
On January 18, 2020, Conor McGregor will fight Donald Cerrone in the main event of UFC 246. Despite this huge matchup, UFC President Dana White is already looking to the future and thinking about McGregor’s next fight, according to MMA Fighting.
Did Dana White jinx it?
Many people, and likely White included, predict that McGregor will beat Cerrone. That said, in the sports world, thinking ahead as if McGregor’s already beaten Cerrone can jinx things. Obviously, this is nothing but superstition. But there are many examples of UFC fighters assuming a win and then paying the price.
For example, former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold talked smack about the skill level of light heavyweight fighters. He moved up to the light heavyweight division because he didn’t think the fighters there were strong. In his light heavyweight debut, however, Rockhold got brutally knocked out with a broken jaw.
That’s not to say that this will happen to McGregor, as he’s always been a big trash talker who rarely loses. But still, it’s best for the Irish fighter to focus on winning against Cerrone before preparing for the future. That said, White has several scheduled fights for McGregor already.
Conor McGregor vs. Jorge Masvidal
In McGregor’s fight against Cerrone, both men will weigh about 170 lb. This is unusual for McGregor, as he’s primarily fought at 145 and 155 lb. However, what’s not surprising is that the 170-lb welterweight division is exactly the one where current BMF champion Jorge Masvidal fights.
In fact, this is exactly the fight White wants to see happen despite saying that it won’t. This fight makes sense for everyone involved. For one, both McGregor and Masvidal are big stars. A fight between them would make White and the UFC a lot of money.
Second, both men want it. In fact, Masvidal has talked trash about McGregor for months now. McGregor isn’t the type of person to let this go unchecked, so it makes sense for him to fight Masvidal. On the other hand, Masvidal mainly wants to do it for the money — understandable given the average pay for a UFC fighter.
White says the fight between the two will be for the BMF title, but he’s also planned another fight for McGregor already.
A rematch against Khabib Nurmagomedov?
Current lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is expected to fight Tony Ferguson on April 18, 2020. However, these two men have been scheduled to fight each other five times now. The last four times, the fight was ultimately canceled due to an injury or a sickness.
White doesn’t want this to happen again. But, if it does, he’s got a backup plan: McGregor. As White said, McGregor will be on standby in case either Nurmagomedov or Ferguson pulls out of the fight again. If either men can’t make it to the fight, then McGregor will challenge the man who did make it.
This could mean that McGregor will get a rematch against Nurmagomedov in April. However, Nurmagomedov has said he doesn’t care for a rematch against McGregor. If Nurmagomedov and Ferguson can fight each other without any issues, then the plan will be to have McGregor fight Masvidal.
It’s also possible that McGregor will get a chance at both fights this year. Either way, 2020 seems like it could be a good year for McGregor fans.
