UFC 229 is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will be held on October 6, 2018 at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada.
UFC 229 will be headlined by a UFC Lightweight Championship bout between undefeated champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and former two-division champion Conor McGregor . A UFC Welterweight Championship bout between current champion Tyron Woodley and challenger Darren Till takes place at the co-main event .
Let’s take a look at each fighter.
Conor McGregor is a former champion in two divisions. He is known for his unorthodox fighting style, accurate and powerful strikes, effective grappling and strong stamina. McGregor is also a former UFC Featherweight Champion earning the title by defeating José Aldo at UFC 194 in December 2015, which was the fastest victory in UFC title fight history at 13 seconds . McGregor became the first fighter in UFC history to hold titles in multiple weight classes simultaneously when he defeated Eddie Alvarez for the UFC Lightweight Championship at UFC 205 , giving him the distinction of holding championships in two divisions at different weights concurrently; he then won this title outright 7 months later by knocking out Alvarez again with a second round knockout 3:04 into round 2 on July 12, 2016.
Kahbib Numarmagomedov is a member of Khaled Kushnaryov 's Sambo Wrestling Master Class. He was the NCAA champion in Combat Sambo and Judo while attending the National Sports Academy of Dagestan . Nurmagomedov has won 22 straight fights including nine victories inside the Octagon, which ties him with former middleweight champion Anderson Silva for most consecutive UFC wins to start a career.
After defeating Michael Johnson at UFC 205 , Nurmagomedov's profile skyrocketed due to his dominant performance over one of the best lightweights in terms of popularity and skill. His victory also earned him an Performance Of The Night bonus award and front-page headlines on many sports news websites.
The keys to victory for Khabib is to simply bring the fight to the ground where he is a much more dominant opponent. If he can do this, it will be a short night for Conor. He should try to cut the cage on him and keep him in striking distance. If he can take him down, it’s likely that McGregor will not get back up.
On the other side, if McGregor is even able to make it out of the first round then his keys to victory are: keep range by moving around rather than attacking; utilize movement and footwork to avoid Khabib’s takedown attempts; and look for an opportunity to strike with a high-risk technique like a flying knee or head kick followed by ground punches.
We expect Khabib to able to have his way with Conor on the ground, which should allow him to win this fight in one of two ways: he will submit McGregor via rear-naked choke or possibly by forcing a second round stoppage via punches.
UFC 229 has some interesting matchups lined up for us. Khabib Nurmagomedov versus Conor McGregor is just one of them.