Rafael Fiziev will have his hands full in a main event matchup against Mateusz Gamrot tomorrow night (Sat., Sept. 23, 2023) at UFC Vegas 79 live on ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, but like most other lightweights fighting nowadays “Ataman” has found himself talking about Conor McGregor during fight week.
Fiziev will enter an important showdown with Gamrot this weekend at UFC Vegas 79 after coming off a decision loss to Justin Gaethje this past March. The talented striker remains one of the best contenders at 155 pounds today and could be one win away from title contention. It all starts with Gamrot tomorrow night in “Sin City.”
Because of Fiziev’s status in the lightweight division he often gets asked about McGregor and what it means to have “Notorious” coming back into the fold. Fiziev did an interview earlier this week and held no punches when discussing McGregor’s chances against future opponent, Michael Chandler.
“Michael and I have the same problem, because he also has to control his emotions in the fight,” Fiziev told MMA Fighting. “He has to control it. I think if he starts to control emotions, following the game plan only, he’ll beat Conor, because Conor, he lost the focus. He’s not the Conor from six years ago, five years ago. It’s not [the same] Conor.
“He just has to stay smart, have to stay calm, and I think Michael can win this fight easily just because [Conor] lost the focus. I think if he [gets out of] one round, after, [Chandler will win].
“It’s a very interesting fight.”
Despite his inactivity and lack of wins over the past few years, McGregor continues to get big fights based on his global popularity and ability to sell a pay-per-view (PPV). It’s something that has rubbed other fighters the wrong way, but Fiziev completely understands why “Notorious” is always in a position to succeed.
“For me it’s like, it’s crazy, bro,” said Fiziev. “This guy, he’s a superstar, [and] because he’s a superstar, he do whatever [he wants], he don’t need this fight. Now, he fights just for fun, just to stay active.
“It’s still this crazy situation because, How is USADA not testing him? He’s lightweight fighter and you don’t test him. It’s crazy why he can’t do it like that but everybody [else] can, but it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. But I think he deserves all this s*** around him, because he’s a superstar, man. If you or me [become a star] like him, I think we can we can do the bullsh-t the same.
“He’s superstar level, that’s why he’s doing this bullsh-t,” Fiziev continues. “But I don’t say if I [become] the superstar, I [would do] the same, because I like [there] to be justice. I don’t want to say [it’s] not justice [with McGregor], but yeah, he does it because he’s a superstar.”
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