Conor McGregor tipped to become “fantastic coach” after UFC retirement

12/09/2021

UFC star Conor McGregor has been backed to become a top coach after he calls it quits on his fighting career.

McGregor has been sitting on the sidelines since July after breaking his tibia during his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.

The former two-weight champion said he will return to "full MMA sparring" by April next year, lining up his next fight shortly after that.

The lack of mobility he had on his injured leg meant McGregor was limited to the weight room during his recovery.

He has noticeably piled on a lot of muscle mass since his loss to Poirier and claimed to be "190lbs of granite" in a recent tweet.

And McGregor – who has two fights left on his current UFC deal – has already been labelled as a "fantastic coach" by his longtime trainer John Kavanagh.

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"He used to teach for me. Back in the day, he used to take my boxing classes," Kavanagh told the BBC.

"It wasn't that long ago and he was walking through the gym and there was a beginner boxer class starting. He just walked in and went: 'Oh, I'll take this class today.'

"You could see everybody just froze and he spent an hour and a half on the mat with absolute beginners trying to perfect their jab. It was pretty amazing to watch.

"So I'm hoping he'll fall into that role. He actually is a fantastic coach."

As McGregor prepares for his return to the octagon, he has also been called out by the likes of Max Holloway, Tony Ferguson and Michael Chandler.

The Irishman finds himself ranked at No.9 in the UFC's lightweight rankings having not won at the weight class in over five years.

McGregor's rival Dustin Poirier will get his shot at the lightweight title this weekend against Charles Oliveira at UFC 269.

And Kavanagh has weighed in on the "killer" division that McGregor will attempt to tackle when he returns to the sport next year.

“That division is killer, Dan Hooker’s in there. The Islam Makhachev fight would be amazing as well, for obvious reasons," Kavanagh said whilst appearing on The MMA Hour.

Makhachev is a protege of the now-retired Khabib Nurmagomedov, who McGregor lost to in 2018 with a post-fight brawl between the two teams capturing the headlines.

"And we have whoever’s going to win this belt when Charles Oliveira fights Dustin Poirier," Kavanagh continued.

"So look, any of those names [are possible opponents] – I’m just excited to see Conor back.”

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