Conor McGregor wants to defend UFC title against Khabib Nurmagomedov in Russia after boxing Floyd Mayweather

His professional boxing debut against Floyd Mayweather has only recently been announced – but Conor McGregor already has one eye on his return to the UFC.

McGregor will take on Mayweather in Las Vegas on August 26 in one of the most lucrative fights in the history of combat sport.

The Irishman last fought in the Octagon at UFC 205 and the organisation’s president, Dana White, has previously expressed the fear that he could decide to retire after switching codes to take on Mayweather.

However White’s fears appear to have been allayed as he has since revealed who McGregor told him he wants to fight next.

White claims that McGregor has told him he wants to make his first lightweight title defence against Russia’s Khabib Nurmagomedov, who boasts a flawless professional MMA record of 24-0.

“You know what Conor told me? I want Khabib in Russia,” White told MMA Junkie.

“Isn’t he f***ing awesome? He’s like, ‘I want Khabib, in Russia.’ He’s awesome. Conor McGregor is a f***ing unicorn. There’s nothing like him.

“He’s working on boxing Floyd Mayweather and then he’s talking about fighting Khabib in Russia right after. Those are the kind of things that make that kid a superstar.

“I’ve got guys telling me, ‘I don’t want to fight this guy, and I don’t want to do this.’ And then Conor says: ‘I want Floyd Mayweather and then I want Khabib in Russia.’ So how do you not love him? How do you not love Conor McGregor? He is amazing.”

Nurmagomedov has won eight straight fights in the UFC and was scheduled to fight Tony Ferguson at UFC 209 for the interim Lightweight Championship. However, he was taken to hospital two nights before the fight due to weight cutting issues and deemed medically ineligible to fight.

It was the third time a bout between the two men had been cancelled.

“Those guys (have) got to fight,” White added. “It would have seemed a lot worse if those two guys fought (at UFC 209), and they were all sitting around waiting. It didn’t happen. That fight still needs to happen. So this thing could time out perfectly.”

A fight between McGregor and Nurmagomedov in Russia would mark the UFC’s first expansion into that country.

But despite never staging a UFC event, Russia is seen as a hotbed of MMA talent. Nurmagomedov is listed in fourteenth on the organisation’s pound-for-pound list, while Fedor Emelianenko – who recently lost at Bellator NYC – is regarded as a legend of the sport.