Dana White Shares True Feelings On Conor McGregor's Performance Against Khabib Nurmagomedov

Dana White believes Conor McGregor doesn't receive the "credit that he deserves" as a top-level fighter and hailed his performance against Khabib Nurmagomedov as "impressive."

McGregor, 32, clashed with fierce rival Khabib in a blockbuster super-fight at UFC 229 in 2018 in Las Vegas.

The Irish superstar has been vocal about his desire to face lightweight champ before he announced his shock MMA retirement in June.

Khabib, 31, is set to make his long-awaited return to the octagon as he prepares to defend his title against interim champ Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 on 25th October.

Speaking ahead of next month's UFC 254, White said that Gaethje's "MMA wrestling is on point" and "hits like a truck."

But the 51-year-old UFC president touched on McGregor's performance against Khabib and he feels the Irishman's trash-talking skills can often overshadow his fighting ability.

White told BT Sport: "The reality is Gaethje's MMA wrestling is on point. His MMA wrestling is solid.

"He hits like a truck. He can knock you out with either hand. And then you got Khabib, who is undefeated.

"I think because Conor is such a huge superstar and because Conor talks so much people don't actually give Conor that much credit that he deserves for how good and how tough he really is.

"If you look at the fight between him and Khabib, impressive... Again, stylistically, if you look at a guy like Gaethje, he is the most dangerous type of fighter for Khabib."

Gaethje, 31, punched his ticket to the Khabib fight after causing a stunning upset against Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 in May.

Khabib was initially set to face Ferguson in April before the mega-fight was cancelled due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The 'Eagle' hasn't fought inside the octagon since he defended and unified his lightweight title against Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 in September 2019.

Featured Image Credit: PA/BT Sport

Topics: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor Mcgregor, UFC 229, Notorious, UFC News, MMA News, UFC, eagle, MMA, Dana White

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

@AdnanRiaz9