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Honestly, I do not see a way for Conor to stop Khabib's chain wrestling if they find themselves in the clinch, easily the best part of Khabib's game and possibly the weakest of Conor's. The way he's able to seamlessly transition from takedown/trip attempts there is like the Phil Davis from the Teixeira fight on steroids. On the ground, things could get grim for Conor, but I think Khabib might let him stand just to take him down over and over, to sap away at his suspect gas tank and soften him up for the eventual finish.
Having said that, I think Conor might be able to get things done early for a couple of reasons. First and foremost: he always starts his fights moving around, with good footwork, which lets have an easier time probing with strikes until he finds his range and, after lulling his opponent into a false sense of security, he whips out the first left hand that catches them off-guard. The MJ fight taught us that a fast southpaw could pose problems for Khabib on the feet, even if the latter was not on the receiving end of any significant damage – even in what was Michael's brightest moment, which was that combo that "rocked" Khabib we saw that the strike did not do so much as put him slightly off-balance.
For as much as people want to act as though Khabib closing the distance and wrapping up Conor is a foregone conclusion, in his fights against dangerous, fast strikers like Barboza and MJ, it has been apparent that he'll take at least a minute before trying to initiate the grappling, and in that minute he does look vulnerable to strikes, particularly body shots, his defense for head strikes is not bad at all, although you could argue that the reason he sometimes eats strikes at the start of his bouts is due to wanting to start pressuring his opponent and dictating the pace of the fight from the get-go.
Should he do the same against Conor, I could see him getting stunned and finished, but I still have to give the edge to Khabib, since he has the ability to, at the very least, stall the fight until Conor starts to be less mobile, which would be in the second round or so. Having said that, I will pick Conor because I believe he has the ability to exploit whatever opening Khabib will inevitably leave at the start of the fight. The first few minutes will be telling.
Having said that, I think Conor might be able to get things done early for a couple of reasons. First and foremost: he always starts his fights moving around, with good footwork, which lets have an easier time probing with strikes until he finds his range and, after lulling his opponent into a false sense of security, he whips out the first left hand that catches them off-guard. The MJ fight taught us that a fast southpaw could pose problems for Khabib on the feet, even if the latter was not on the receiving end of any significant damage – even in what was Michael's brightest moment, which was that combo that "rocked" Khabib we saw that the strike did not do so much as put him slightly off-balance.
For as much as people want to act as though Khabib closing the distance and wrapping up Conor is a foregone conclusion, in his fights against dangerous, fast strikers like Barboza and MJ, it has been apparent that he'll take at least a minute before trying to initiate the grappling, and in that minute he does look vulnerable to strikes, particularly body shots, his defense for head strikes is not bad at all, although you could argue that the reason he sometimes eats strikes at the start of his bouts is due to wanting to start pressuring his opponent and dictating the pace of the fight from the get-go.
Should he do the same against Conor, I could see him getting stunned and finished, but I still have to give the edge to Khabib, since he has the ability to, at the very least, stall the fight until Conor starts to be less mobile, which would be in the second round or so. Having said that, I will pick Conor because I believe he has the ability to exploit whatever opening Khabib will inevitably leave at the start of the fight. The first few minutes will be telling.
