Conor McGregor hasn't even returned to the Octagon for his fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov - which will take place this Saturday, October 6, at UFC 229 - but the superstar fighter is already looking ahead to potential future matchups.
This weekend's matchup with Khabib will mark the brash Irishman's return to the UFC after a nearly two-year hiatus. He will be fighting to reclaim the lightweight championship belt which he was stripped of due to inactivity. But he doesn't seem too worried by his opponent, promising to win this weekend by "devastating KO."
And what's next for McGregor, who
recently signed a six-fight deal with the UFC?
"I'm certainly considering a few options. There's this fight and the co-main (Tony Ferguson vs. Anthony Pettis). Of course, then there's boxing ventures. I'm very excited about that," McGregor told ESPN's Ariel Hewani. One lucrative venture would be a rematch with boxing great Floyd Mayweather.
"If [Mayweather] has the bottle to come over and deal with this, like he said he has, let's see what happens. I would also like to box him again. Everything is being discussed. Every rule set. If it's not an MMA bout, then I don't want to know. It's either a straight MMA bout or a straight boxing bout. If they come looking for modified rules, I would rather just box the kid again. If you don't want to deal with it, then don't deal with it and stop going on like you're doing."
McGregor also mentioned the possibility of fighting Anderson Silva.
"I would be interested in an Anderson Silva bout. I swear to God. Anderson is a legend in the game," McGregor said.
"What's the difference between him and Georges [St-Pierre]? Same damn thing. I'm going to do fights that interest me or have meaning."
Another obvious option is a third fight with Nate Diaz. The two fighters have met twice before. Diaz submitted McGregor in the second round fo the first fight at UFC 196. But a rematch at UFC 202 went in favor of McGregor who won by majority decision.
"Nate Diaz will always have a rematch off of me," McGregor said.
"No matter what happens, I will always give that man his rematch. He gave me a rematch, I give him a rematch. That's the way it is. When it will happen, I don't know. We will complete that trilogy, no doubt about it."
Up first, though, is the undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov. The current lightweight champ is a perfect 26-0 and coming off a unanimous decision win against Al Iaquinta at UFC 223 in April.