Al Iaquinta is one of the victims of Khabib Nurmagomedov, who has stepped inside the cage with The Eagle and lived (and was willing) to talk about it. Iaquinta knows all too well what it’s like to be in there with the undefeated Nurmagomedov, and he doesn’t see things going much smoother for one Conor McGregor when he challenges Khabib for the lightweight championships in the UFC 229 main event:
“The worst-case scenario, I think he takes a few shots from Conor and just keeps coming forward,” Iaquinta told MMA Fighting. “I mean, Conor obviously has the power to put him out, but I don’t know. Does he? I think a lot of people think he does, because he’s knocked a lot of people out, but Khabib is tough. He sees things, he’s got a little awkward style, which is different. It’s tough to adjust to, because it’s so different standup-wise.
“Conor, he’s quit before, he’s given up,” he continued. “Against Diaz, it gets a little later rounds. I think he’s a pretty fighter. If the fight is pretty and it’s going good for him … [Chad] Mendes took that fight on no notice. He had zero in the gas tank going into that fight. If it’s five rounds of that, I think Conor is finding a way out.”
Always one to speak his mind unfiltered, Al Iaquinta expressed what he hopes will result from the UFC 229 main event: a broken, dispirited, and disfigured Conor McGregor:
“It would look good for me — if [Khabib] beats the shit out of [Conor] more than he beat the shit out of me on a day’s notice. It’d look real good. So, I hope Khabib fucking knocks his ass out, makes him quit, and rearranges his face like he says he’s gonna do. I think it’s gonna happen. I hope it happens.”
Do you believe we will see Khabib give Conor McGregor the mauling that Al Iaquinta hopes for?
