UFC 249: Conor McGregor has ‘no chance’ of replacing Khabib against Tony Ferguson, says coach
- Coach John Kavanagh says ‘it wouldn’t be smart’ to rush McGregor into fight
- ‘Me and Conor have no physical interactions – gyms are shut down’
Conor McGregor may have teased fans about the possibility of stepping in at UFC 249, but his coach has seemingly doused any hopes of “The Notorious” fighting Tony Ferguson.
With the event just 15 days away, it’s becoming increasingly likely that the Ferguson vs Khabib Nurmagomedov match-up will be scrapped for the fifth time since 2015.
Nurmagomedov is stranded in his native Russia where the borders are closed because of the global Covid-19 outbreak. And coach John Kavanagh told ESPN in an Instagram Live it’s the same deal for Irishman McGregor.
“No chance of that,” Kavanagh said. “Ireland is on a pretty strict lockdown. Me and Conor have no physical interactions. There’s no physical interaction at the gym. Gyms are shut down.”
Ferguson has said “nobody deserves that ass whooping besides two people” – McGregor and Nurmagomedov – as he poured cold water on any possibility of fighting No 4-ranked lightweight Justin Gaethje on April 18. UFC president Dana White is also still desperately trying to find a location for the show, which can no longer be held at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, New York.