Khabib: Conor the Burger King can’t handle real fighters like me

Khabib Nurmagomedov’s unique brand of smack talk is something else to experience. Remember when he was wailing on Michael Johnson during their fight and simultaneously telling him to give up because this was Khabib’s time? He also used his time between rounds in the Barboza fight to yell at Dana White about a title shot.

That’s the kind of trash talking I wish we could see more of, but unfortunately Khabib just isn’t a high frequency fighter. Fortunately, his dishing skills outside the cage are only improving, and he’s getting a lot of practice s**t talking Conor McGregor over his recent spicy chicken Burger King sponsorship.

“A lot of people call him like a king but he’s not like a king,” Nurmagomedov told Yahoo! Sports (transcript via MMA Weekly). “Now he’s Burger King. He has money, he has good life, he’s a famous guy. I think it’s better for him if he stay away from good fighters in the lightweight division. For me, too, because when you go to the cage with me it’s not like you’re going to cage with Burger King. This is different. That’s why he has to stay away.”

“He has money, he’s already the UFC champ, he’s a two division champ, everything is good. Stay away. This is not a Burger King’s sport. This is for real fighters ... I think he wants easy fights like when he fights Mayweather. He don’t need to come back preparing for five rounds, versus tough wrestling guy who is going to take you down and smash your face.”

Nurmagomedov makes a compelling case. Can Conor McGregor still reach deep inside and find that burning desire to risk it all now that he’s got a hundred million sitting in his bank account? The field at 155 is only getting more crowded with absolute killers, but who needs to dig deep when Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov are sitting right at the top?

If all goes well, Ferguson and Nurmagomedov will face off at UFC 223 in April and the winner will face McGregor. Khabib’s already got the Octagon skills, and now he’s on the right track with his promos. We’ve gotta say we’re pretty excited at the possibility of Khabib vs. Conor. The UFC seems to be too, considering they’ve reportedly put a stadium in Moscow on hold just in case he wins at UFC 223.