Ben Askren convinced that Conor McGregor is jealous of Khabib Nurmagomedov: ‘No money can make up for that’

Ben Askren believe Conor McGregoryour constant shots at Khabib Nurmagomedov are fueled by jealousy.

McGregor and Nurmagomedov competed in the biggest-selling pay-per-view event in UFC history when they met in the title fight at UFC 229. The build-up was ugly, but Nurmagomedov had the last laugh when submitted McGregor to retain the lightweight belt. Nurmagomedov didn’t hold back after submitting McGregor to the immediately jumped the fence to attack his corner. A fight ensued between the two teams, and the disagreement is very much alive on McGregor’s part.

McGregor accused Nurmagomedov of running away from competition when he retired in October 2020 and has continually insulted him – most recently after hearing rumors that Nurmagomedov was allegedly underpaying his companies’ taxes.

“This is typical rat behavior,” McGregor said in a live streaming with Duelbits. “Mouse running. Fighting for legacy, two main events or something in the UFC, and he owes his blocks to the Russian government.

“So he’s going to pay the fucking money he owes instead of diverting it to other countries. I’m ecstatic and happy that this is happening for him, and we will all welcome him back to the fight game he ran away from.”

Askren isn’t surprised to see McGregor go after Nurmagomedov and theorizes that “The Eagle” is everything he wants to be.

“He will never stop doing that, ever,” Askren said of McGregor in his “Funky and the Champion” show with Daniel Cormier. “He will turn 80 by attacking Khabib because he is jealous, of course. I have no doubt. He has all the money in the world. Deep in his heart, what he wanted to be was the most respected fighting champion on planet Earth.

“No amount of money can make up for this. That’s what Khabib is. Khabib is a fighting champion who everyone has a lot of respect for because of the way he lived his life. Conor wishes he had so much respect for himself, but he’s too busy with prostitutes and cocaine and just can’t control himself. So, of course he is jealous of Khabib.”

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) returns from a nearly three-year layoff in a welterweight bout against Michael Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) at UFC 303, June 29, in Las Vegas (paid). per view, ESPN, ESPN+).

For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC 303.

This story originally appeared on MMA Junkie