Sherdog's Own Pick for UFC 229: Conor McGregor vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov

Who wins?

  • Total voters
    917
  • Poll closed .
I’m going for Khabib by submission (3rd round kimura)
 
Not sure on this one. I would have picked Khabib without question not long ago, but Conor certainly has a shot.

Mendes is the closest fighter to Khabib that Conor has fought, but they are very different. Chad is better at setting up the TD with strikes, uses his lack of height to get underneath opponents, and his blast double is one of the best in the game.

Khabib has a wide varierty of takedowns and trips. He's a much bigger guy than Chad. His top game is much more unrelenting. He has solid submissions, nasty gnp. He is a much bigger threat than Chad on the ground, but he may have a harder time gettting Conor there. His striking is sloppy and Conor only has to worry about being taken down. That's still a big thing to worry about with a guy like Khabib, but Chad had 1 punch ko power and cleaner striking.

I think Khabib will drown Conor if he gets him down and keeps him down. I could see Conor being able to get a finish possibly even up to rd 4, but if Conor gets mauled I don't see him staging a comeback.

One thing Conor does have is excellent balance. Khabib's takedowns aren't super clean and at times he will be holding onto a leg trying to force an opponent off-balance and onto the mat. Conor seems like a guy who can counter this.

This one could go either way. I am going to go with Khabib though, under the assumption he doesn't fight like an idiot. He will leave openings for Conor at times, but I believe he could be his own worst enemy in this fight; he needs to make sure he doesn't get overly sloppy and overly comfortable on the feet. Conor doesn't need much of an opening. I am picking Khabib via RD 3 TKO.
 
Khabib pummels and ends Mcg in the 4th rd.
 
CoffeeAndBeer Prediction:

Conor will suffer a few takedowns early, but will survive. Ultimately (by the 2nd or 3rd), he'll be effective in neutralizing Khabib's takedown attempts using short hooks (maybe even elbows), quick knees (for Khabib to run into rather than attacking with them), and shovel-punches (odd-angled upper-cuts as he's side-stepping). Conor will be able to control range and sniper Khabib. Khabib will be KO'ed in the 3rd.

@CoffeeAndBeer
Conor will suffer a few takedowns early, but will survive. Ultimately (by the 2nd or 3rd), he'll be effective in neutralizing Khabib's takedown attempts using short hooks (maybe even elbows), quick knees (for Khabib to run into rather than attacking with them), and shovel-punches (odd-angled upper-cuts as he's side-stepping). Conor will be able to control range and sniper Khabib. Khabib will be KO'ed in the 3rd.
 
P.S.
My mind has been changed since last time I was these Sherdog forums (it's been months)
 
Could be we see an Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen 1 type of fight/result?!
 
Khabib by tko round 2
 
Well, I was right on the money. But...

giphy.gif
 
paynebringer said:
The ceremonial weigh-In drama of last night reminded of another big fight and shook fighting star...

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And we all remember the end results of all this false bravado

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24hrs later ↓↓↓

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Click to expand...

Dana's smile when he got the perfect excuse for grabbing the chick's tits. <36>
 
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