Conor McGregor Next Fight: Khabib Nurmagomedov, Nate Diaz, Jose Aldo Among Possible Opponents

Conor McGregor’s return to the octagon didn’t go as planned Saturday night when he lost by submission to Khabib Nurmagomedov in the fourth round of the UFC 229 main event. Between the post-fight melee and the one-sided nature of the title bout, there are several unanswered questions regarding what is next for the biggest star in MMA history.

When will McGregor fight next? Who will be his opponent?

If the betting odds are any indication, a rematch with Nurmagomedov could be in McGregor’s future. The UFC lightweight champion is favored by Bovada.lv to be McGregor’s next opponent with 5/8 odds. Nate Diaz (13/10) is second on the list, followed by Jose Aldo (9/1), Georges St-Pierre (15/4) and Tyron Woodley (18/1).

Making a second fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov would come with its share of obstacles. Nurmagomedov is facing a potential suspension for attacking one of McGregor’s coaches immediately after the fight ended, and UFC president Dana White admitted there’s a chance Nurmagomedov will be stripped of the belt.

There’s also the fact that Nurmagomedov defeated McGregor handily. McGregor did become the first UFC fighter to ever win a round from Nurmagomedov, though it’s hard to say he did enough to justify another shot at the title.

McGregor tweeted Sunday that he's looking forward to the rematch. A second fight with Nurmagomedov would sell plenty of pay-per-views, in part because of the brawl that took place after Saturday’s fight.

UFC fans have been waiting for McGregor-Diaz III for more than two years. The fighters faced off twice in 2016, generating more than three million PPV buys. Diaz handed McGregor his first-ever loss in UFC at UFC 196. McGregor defeated Diaz by majority decision at UFC 202 five months later in one of the greatest fights in UFC history.

Diaz has taken a bigger break from fighting than McGregor. The 33-year-old hasn’t competed in the octagon since facing off with McGregor on Aug. 20, 2016. Diaz’s return is set for UFC 230 on Nov. 3 against Dustin Poirier.

Aldo never got a rematch with McGregor after losing the UFC featherweight championship in just 13 seconds at UFC 194 in December 2015. He went on to lose two of his next three fights, though the former champion is coming off a first-round knockout of Jeremy Stephens in July.

In the summer, St-Pierre said he would be interested in fighting the winner of McGregor-Nurmagomedov. St-Pierre returned from a four-year layoff to defeat Michael Bisping for the UFC middleweight championship on Nov. 4, 2017, though he hasn’t fought since. The 37-year-old has won his last 13 fights, competing at both 170 and 185 pounds.

A fight between McGregor and Woodley is a long shot. It would give McGregor a chance to win a title in a third division, having already held the 145-pound and 155-pound belts.

Woodley has been the UFC welterweight champion for nearly two and a half years. Both of McGregor’s fights with Diaz were at 170 pounds.