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According to Ali Abdelaziz, Conor McGregor has repeatedly turned down a matchup against Justin Gaethje—a fight that could have been a blockbuster for UFC fans. During an interview on Submission Radio, Abdelaziz, Gaethje's manager, claimed McGregor avoided the fight on multiple occasions, despite the UFC offering it at least five times.
“Let’s be real, Conor McGregor will never, will never, will never... he got offered this fight at least five times,” said Abdelaziz, who believes McGregor’s hesitation stems from a personal grudge.
“He never wanted to have to do anything with Justin Gaethje. He said the reason he didn’t want to fight Justin was because Justin talked bad to him on Twitter and Instagram before. He didn’t want to lose to our team, I guess.”
This claim was further backed by Gaethje himself in a separate interview with TMZ Sports. Gaethje suggested that McGregor’s reluctance was tied to the risk of losing to him and the subsequent damage it could do to McGregor’s star power.
"How you lose to me is not how you can lose and continue to be Conor McGregor. That’s a big risk for him,” Gaethje remarked.
Abdelaziz went on to discuss how UFC fighters are advised to handle McGregor, specifically warning them against engaging in social media feuds with the Irishman.
“The UFC told me, ‘Hey, leave him alone. Don’t talk with him. He doesn’t like to fight people who talk bad to him on the internet.’ He likes to be the one to start the talk and you retaliate,” Abdelaziz explained.
The manager also referenced Michael Chandler’s approach of being “nice” to McGregor in hopes of securing a fight, emphasizing how McGregor prefers controlling the narrative.
The animosity between Abdelaziz and McGregor can be traced back to the notorious rivalry between McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov, Abdelaziz’s most famous client. Khabib’s submission victory over McGregor at UFC 229 left a lasting impact, not just in terms of the fight result but in the mental warfare that followed.
“Khabib took everything away from this man. Every time he looks at himself in the mirror, he thinks about a Dagestani guy who wears a papakha,” Abdelaziz said, alluding to McGregor’s psychological scars from that night.
Despite the history, the McGregor-Gaethje fight remains a tantalizing “what if” for fight fans. But based on Abdelaziz’s comments, it seems McGregor may never be willing to take that risk.
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