Conor McGregor believes he has developed a "system" to beat fighters such as the newly-crowned UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
In a series of tweets which he has since deleted, the Irishman claimed his desire to beat Makhachev was "not personal", despite his deeply personal rivalry with the Russian's friend and cornerman Khabib Nurmagomedov. He had a vicious feud with the former champion which resulted in a huge fight in 2018, in which he was defeated by fourth-round submission.
Nurmagomedov vacated the belt at 155lb after two more defences against Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje, with Charles Oliveira picking up the vacant strap. And the Brazilian was defeated last night at UFC 280, with the Russian's teammate Makhachev taking the belt back to Dagestan in a dominant performance.
But McGregor was relatively unimpressed, and despite insisting that he will be returning to action at welterweight, he seemed keen to show his ability to beat a style like Makhachev's. The Irishman is currently out injured after breaking his leg last year, and could be forced to sit out for another six months after not being tested for a year.
"Nice fight, nice performance," McGregor wrote in a message likely directed at Makhachev. "I have built all the tools to beat this style now vs before. Experience vs s***. Face breaking shots from clinch and baby brain batter shots from bottom. And the rest of my repertoire yous know. Steel left leg. Cannon back hand. Wrist control.
"The thought of shutting down this system of fighting with my own developed system is quite intriguing to me. Whoever of them against. It's not personal. It's a skill evaluation and a fight. Even through generations. The IMAAFs, amateurs. A war of attrition. To the box."
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McGregor insisted to fans that he has what it takes to beat Makhachev's style of fighting, as well as taking a shot at his pal Nurmagomedov. McGregor infamously struggled with pressure grapplers throughout his prime, but he believes that he has developed a "system" in his time off that will beat the current lightweight champion, who is an International Sambo Master.
"I have the system to hurt this style of fighting guys I am telling you," McGregor wrote in one of his deleted messages. "Bro is a s*** jocks. Fat mouth shut your mouth you done nothing tonight except go against fathers wishes and run. It's not fathers plan completed yet, pal. You know. Your people know and they talk about you."
McGregor also took aim at Makhachev's manager Ali Abdelaziz, who called him a "low life s***" and claimed that he "needs a face slap soon". He insisted that he would "squash" his rival's head and insisted that his jibes at Nurmagomedov and Makhachev was "truth", telling him "you know it".
