Khabib Nurmagomedov calls Conor McGregor his toughest fight ‘mentally’ at that point of career

Khabib Nurmagomedov has reflected on his dominant UFC 229 victory over Conor McGregor in October 2018, acknowledging that despite winning decisively by fourth-round submission, the mental challenge posed by the Irish star proved to be his toughest fight up to that point in his career.

The bout represented the climax of a bitter rivalry between the two lightweights. McGregor had vacated the title to pursue a lucrative boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr., while Nurmagomedov claimed the vacant belt during his absence. When McGregor returned to reclaim his throne, the buildup turned intensely personal, with McGregor attacking every aspect of Nurmagomedov's life in an attempt to destabilize him. Though Nurmagomedov emerged victorious—and subsequently attacked McGregor's corner in the aftermath—the psychological toll was substantial.

In an interview with Lex Fridman, Nurmagomedov revealed that McGregor's relentless verbal assault got under his skin more than any opponent had before. "One hundred percent," he said of the fight being his toughest mental challenge. "Fighting's all psychology, you know? It's a mental game. Mentally speaking, that was my toughest fight. At that point, yeah. But a tougher fight came later." That later fight was his October 2020 retirement bout against Justin Gaethje, where Nurmagomedov fought while grieving the loss of his father and coach Abdulmanap, who had died earlier that year.

Nurmagomedov credited the authenticity of his rivalry with McGregor as the key to its massive appeal. McGregor's willingness to cross personal lines—touching on family, religion, and culture—combined with his natural charisma created a genuine, unscripted feud that transcended MMA. Nurmagomedov compared the rivalry to boxing's greatest feuds, notably Muhammad Ali versus Joe Frazier, and argued that their fight achieved similar cultural penetration, drawing interest from athletes and fans across all sports.