Islam Makhachev has conquered the headlines following his phenomenal final-round victory against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. Hours after his victory, Makhachev’s name began to be linked with that of Conor McGregor, as Khabib Nurmagomedov’s team began pitting the two fighters against each other. Nevertheless, the famed sports journalist, Stephen A. Smith, has decided to ‘protest’ against the matchup.

Without a doubt, the fight between Makhachev and McGregor would garner quite a bit of attention. But a fight becomes interesting when it goes through unpredictable pathways. With Makhachev facing a striker, the entire world knows the outcome. And Smith was one of them. But what was Smith’s opinion on it? Let’s find out.

Stephen A. Smith does not want Conor McGregor to fight Islam Makhachev

Makhachev, being Nurmagomedov’s protege, is one of the strongest grapplers in the world of mixed martial arts. And grapplers are undoubtedly a striker’s ultimate nemesis. Not too long ago, a member of Team Khabib expressed his desire to watch the fight between Makhachev and McGregor. But Smith wasn’t in support of it. Based on how the fight between Makhachev and Poirier proceeded, the sports journalist claimed that Makhachev’s fight with the Irishman would proceed exactly, ending up in the striker’s defeat via submission. 

“That’s exactly what he’s going to do with Conor McGregor. He’s gonna, his whole objective is going to be about getting him to the ground. I think it’s the worst possible fight, we could possibly want to see with the UFC,” Smith opined. Furthermore, he wanted ‘The Notorious’ to keep his focus on UFC 303, where he would face Michael Chandler following a three-year-long hiatus. 

Smith then predicted that if the ‘Mystic Mac’ went against the P4P #1, he would get tapped out within a couple of rounds. For fight fans, a bout becomes interesting if it remains packed with action and goes on for a longer time, instead of a finish in the first couple of rounds. Smith was of the same opinion and claimed that Makhachev vs. McGregor was not the fight he wanted to watch.

Smith said, “First of all, Conor McGregor need to focus on beating Michael Chandler. Let’s get that out of the way. Who I believe he can beat. If he catches him and that’ll be that. Because, because Chandler wants to fight. He wants to throw blows, okay? Somebody like that, Justin Gaethje and guys like that, yeah that’s different. But Makhachev? We shouldn’t, we should, we should literally protest if they try to put Makhachev in the Octagon against Conor McGregor, because I believe that fight would be over inside of two rounds, he’ll get Conor to submit. It’s that simple. That’s not the fight we want to see.”

Nevertheless, the rivalry that the Dubliner and Makhachev’s mentor shared is one of the most attention-grabbing rivalry in the fighting community. Without a doubt, the fans have tried to pit McGregor and Makhachev against each other. Makhachev’s coach and the founder of the American Kickboxing Academy, Javier Mendez, has revealed a similar desire. 

Team Khabib wants the LW champ to fight ‘The Notorious’

Mendez was recently interviewed by the ‘Red Corner MMA’, declaring that he wanted Makhachev to defeat McGregor. Not too long before the events of UFC 302, the Irish mixed martial artist took to X and ranted about Makhachev’s suspected Staph infection in a series of now-deleted tweets. The drama caught the attention of the entire MMA world. But when Mendez was asked about his opinion on McGregor vs. Makhachev’s fight in the future, he showed that he was pretty optimistic. “I want to see him get beat by Islam,” the coach said.

Makhachev himself wanted to fight ‘The Notorious’. In a talk with ESPN, the UFC lightweight champion revealed his desire to fight the former UFC double champion. He claimed that the idea of defeating the Irishman had him excited. However, with Stephen A. Smith standing against the matchup, things might just not proceed as smoothly. 

Do you think Smith was right in his stance against the matchup between McGregor and Makhachev? Let us know in the comments down below.