Conor McGregor vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov: MMA Fighters Make UFC 229 Predictions

Conor McGregor will make his highly-anticipated return to the octagon when he takes on undefeated lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event of UFC 229 which takes place Oct. 6 in Las Vegas.

The fight is a big deal for many reasons. For one, it will be McGregor's first MMA contest since he won the lightweight title against Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in Nov. 2016 and being the cash-cow of the Las Vegas-based promotion, the pay-per-view is expected to break records.

The Irishman already boasts the distinction of not only headlining the most successful event at UFC 202 with 1,600,000 buys, but headlining four of the five biggest UFC pay-per-views in history and UFC president Dana White expects this pay-per-view to break the two million mark.

Another reason why this fight is so anticipated is because of the rivalry between McGregor and Nurmagomedov.

The two notably had a backstage altercation during UFC 205 and were expected to fight each for a while, but things really got heated in April when McGregor threw a dolly at a bus as he targeted Nurmagomedov for allegedly threatening his teammate Artem Lobov.

Those actions led to McGregor going to jail before posting bail as the 30-year-old ultimately pleaded guilty last month to disorderly conduct. It's no surprise the UFC are using footage of that incident in their promos for the fight.

Lastly, the fight is intriguing because of the stylistic match-up. McGregor is known for his power and accuracy, with six of his last seven wins coming by way of knockout, with none of them going into the third round.

Nurmagomedov, on the other hand, is known for his ground game as he takes his opponents to the mat and drains them of their energy while ground and pounding them at the same time.

With just under two months left for the two lightweights to collide, more and more people will be making their predictions as to how the fight will play out. Below are some of the UFC fighters who have already made theirs.

Who believes Conor McGregor will win?

Urijah Faber, UFC Hall of Famer and former WEC featherweight champion

"I think the odds are in Conor’s favor because it starts standing every round. And unless Khabib can take him down over and over again right off the bat, the power’s gonna be a little much. The Mystic Mac has some good wins, he beat Chad Mendes, Jose Aldo, those guys don’t get knocked out often."

Darren Till, UFC welterweight contender

"Before I actually predicted that Khabib would edge it in five rounds - now I'm sort of going towards Conor."

"Listen mate, Khabib's an animal - he's a f-----g sick dude - so is Conor. People write him off because they think Khabib is going to ragdoll him - you're not going to ragdoll him. He's got to be careful to try and ragdoll him because if you come in that distance - I know how it works - you've got to be careful."

Kevin Lee, UFC lightweight contender

"I see him [McGregor] beating Khabib a lot easier than Tony [Ferguson]. I think Conor would sleep him."

Anthony Smith, UFC light heavyweight contender

"Conor McGregor. I think Khabib is very hittable. Overall, Khabib is the better mixed martial artist but Conor is better with distance management and he's accurate and Khabib has shown that he's absolutely able to be hit."

Colby Covington, former UFC interim welterweight champion

"I think Conor will get him. I think Khabib runs in recklessly and I think Conor will pull one on his chin and put him out cold."

Anthony Pettis, former UFC lightweight champion, UFC 229 co-main eventer

“I think Conor wins. Knockout. I don’t know what round. We’ve all seen his [Khabib] striking game. We saw him in his last fight against Al [Iaquinta] and how he performed. If he comes like that against Conor? I mean, that’s the wrong guy to do it against I’m sure he’s motivated, I’m sure Conor’s motivated. But I’m picking Conor."

Mike Perry, UFC welterweight contender

"I think it's going to play out in Conor's favor. I think he's going to hit him, hurt him everytime he hits him, I think he's going to hit him more and more until Khabib can't take it. Yeah, he's tough but 26-0? I don't know a lot of people he's fought and I do know the fights I have seen, he walks in, his ability to close the gap is awful and Conor is going to strike on that and he's going to capitalize on it."

Dustin Poirier, UFC lightweight contender

"The longer the fight goes on, I believe Khabib has the better chance. But then again, Khabib slows down and may have trouble getting takedowns late. So, it's a tough matchup to pick for me. I'm kind of leaning towards Conor, but I keep going back and forth."

Eddie Alvarez, former UFC lightweight champion

"It's a true pick 'em. If Khabib implements his wrestling, he'll win -- but if I had to pick, I would probably have to go with Conor. A lot of that is based on what I saw in Khabib's last fight with Al Iaquinta. Him just shooting the same single leg over and over, not mixing it up. He was making way too many defensive mistakes. Against Conor, you have a small margin for error."

Who believes Khabib Nurmagomedov will win?

Georges St-Pierre, former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion

"To tell you the truth, I believe Khabib has more chance to win that fight than Conor. Conor has one way to win the fight — it will be if he catches him on the way in, standing up. Khabib, I think has more chance to win. He can by submission on the ground, he can win by ground and pound, if he goes to decision, the chances are very likely that it’s Khabib that’s going to win. I see more ways for Khabib than I see for Conor."

Kelvin Gastelum, UFC middleweight title challenger

"Every time someone talks to me about Khabib they tell me how strong he is and how he feels like a heavyweight once he gets ahold of you. And then once he's on top of you, how he feels like a heavyweight. So I feel like, once he grabs ahold of Conor, he's never felt that kind of pressure. I think Khabib will get it done. I'm team Khabib, baby. Khabib time!"

Tyron Woodley, UFC welterweight champion

"If I had to flip a coin, I would probably say Khabib, just cause I think Khabib will deal with the emotion, a lot of guys lose to Conor cause they can't deal with getting emotional. He's going to mentally try to brainwash him, get into the head. I think Khabib will be strong enough mentally not to allow that to happen and stick to the gameplan."

Daniel Cormier, current UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion

"Conor is a sniper, he can hit you with power and from angles that you just don't expect but I don't think anyone's beating Khabib. 26-0, no mistakes, undisputed, undefeated lightweight champion. I think the areas [where] Khabib are really good are areas where he can really expose Conor's weaknesses."

Rafael dos Anjos, former UFC lightweight champion

“Looking at the five-round fight, I think if Khabib put him down in the first round, I think he could get a finish. He’s gonna pound on him and he’s got good control, he’s going to lay on him, on top of him, and it’s gonna be a long night for Conor."

Curtis Blaydes, UFC heavyweight contender

"I'll go with Khabib. It's a lot easier for him to take down McGregor and smash him than it is for McGregor to effectively strike without getting taken down. I just got Khabib winning, I don't know how."