Posting in support of his SBG Ireland teammate Artem Lobov, Conor McGregor recently took to Instagram to tease a future fight in Russia.
A UFC veteran, Lobov was recently in Russia, supposedly at the behest of President Vladimir Putin, to assist in training Russian Federal Protective Service forces. In complimenting his teammate, however, McGregor took time to mention his desire to fight in Russia.
“I am proud of my brother Artem Lobov,” he wrote. “Inside the world famous Kremlin compound discussing and teaching our training methods to the Russian federal reserve on behalf of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“One day soon I will visit Russia and potentially compete there for my Russian fans, alongside my brother Artem.
Thank you to all our Russian supporters for recognising our lifetime of hard work and supporting us along the entire way!”
On the surface, it’s simply McGregor supporting a friend and thanking his fans. But could there be more lurking beneath the surface?
Despite an allegedly good relationship with the UFC brass, McGregor has become known for shrewd negotiations. In the MMA world, Russia has become known for its unscrupulous approach to business, not really caring too much about little hurdles like contracts and such.
Could there be enough money thrown his way by the forces that control MMA in Russia that McGregor might jump ship, contracts be damned, and fight in Russia?
Probably not. He’s more likely referring to a potential UFC powerhouse match-up on Russian soil between himself and Khabib Nurmagomedov should the chips fall that way. But it’s good to let the inner conspiracy demons out for a walk once in a while, right?
