Conor McGregor is on “collision course” for a clash with Nate Diaz’s upcoming opponent, Anthony Pettis.
That’s according to Pettis’ coach, Duke Roufus, who claims his man was a trailblazer for McGregor before the Irishman became the biggest star in UFC.
Pettis will take on Diaz as McGregor’s former rival makes his return to The Octagon after a three-year lay-off on Saturday night at UFC 241.
If he wins, he could push for a chance to fight McGregor on his comeback, with the Irish legend being tipped to return to action for the first time since his defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October 2018.
Roufus believes the stars are aligned for McGregor and Pettis to meet in the future in what he has dubbed a “super fight”.
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Speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show on Monday, Roufus said: “When Anthony does the business Saturday, I see him and Conor McGregor being on a collision course.
“I think it’s definitely going to get Conor’s attention when Anthony beats a guy that beat him and another guy that he won by close decision – especially if Anthony does what I think he’s capable of doing and stopping Nate Diaz.
“I think Anthony’s trying to get those big challenges on the way out the door of his career.
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“Anthony was the Conor before Conor was Conor, the kid with the flashy suits, the look, the style, the pizazz, and he could fight like that.
“So it would be the makings of quite the super fight.”
UFC president Dana White hinted McGregor could make his stunning comeback as early as September by stepping in for Khabib or Dustin Poirier should either suffer an injury before their upcoming clash.
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“I talked to him last week,” White said. “He wants to come back, so I mean really what he’s doing is looking to see how everything plays out in September.
“I was just thinking out there, as of right now, Khabib and Poirier are fighting, (but) you know how this business works.
“Anything can happen and usually does, so I think he’s just sort of waiting to see how it all plays out and does he have an opportunity somewhere to jump in and make something happen.”
