What's next for Conor McGregor:

Will Conor return to MMA or box once again?

After a noble yet unsuccessful display against the now 50-0 Floyd 'Money' Mayweather, the future is still bright as ever for 'The Notorious' Conor McGregor, whether that be in the boxing ring or back in his old stomping ground of the octagon. Facing certainly the best defensive boxer of all time, McGregor used his unorthodox and aggressive pace pushing style needed, to take the first 3 or 4 rounds from Mayweather, stinging the slick Michigan with an uppercut in the first, but forced the intervention from referee Robert Byrd on multiple occasions in the clinch, with UFC Lightweight champ McGregor appearing to land almost 'hammerfists' on Mayweather. As we approached the fourth round in particular, McGregor seemed incredibly fatigued, before Mayweather capitalised to take the fifth round onward till the eight. At the beginning of the eight, McGregor managed to land a decent left shot, forcing Floyd to turn and cover his head with McGregor rushing forward before Robert Byrd separated both after some sloppy striking from Conor. In the final minute or so of the ninth round, Mayweather sensed the fading gas tank of McGregor, and began to drop heavy hands on the chin of the Dubliner, staggering him until the bell signalled the end of the round. Still breathing heavily at the start of the tenth, Mayweather continued his onslaught landing powerful straights, stumbling McGregor again, giving the referee no choice but to step in and call the contest. Mayweather was notably quite offensive when he solved the pattern puzzle of McGregor and deservedly claimed his 50th win, and bowed out in style.

One thing is for certain, and that is although Conor had a distinct lack of experience, the polarising star most definitely didn't embarrass himself and regardless of the loss, has many branching paths ahead of him.

Nate Diaz trilogy bout: The most realistic and exciting prospect ahead of McGregor is the long awaited trilogy ending bout against former two time foe Nate Diaz, this time with Lightweight gold up for grabs. Nate was rumoured to be apart of Mayweather's entourage for his walk out, but this came to no avail last Saturday night, however Diaz did attend the monumental event, meeting Mayweather backstage, congratulating the 12 time champ, before finding himself among a heated confrontation with former UFC Heavyweight contender Brendan Schaub. Diaz of course stepped in on short notice to face McGregor at UFC 196 after then Lightweight king Rafael dos Anjos suffered a broken metatarsal. The bout occured at 170lbs, with Diaz surviving a first round clobbering to rally in the second against an exhausted Conor, and submit the Dubliner with a slick rear-naked choke to many fans shock. Rematching at UFC 202, once more at Welterweight, McGregor dropped the Stockton star 3 times inside the first 10 minutes, and took a razor close majority decision to set up this probable rubber match. With UFC gold on the line for this third meeting, the PPV record would most certainly be blown out of the water by McGregor once again.

Tony Ferguson vs. Kevin Lee victor: With McGregor's last octagon appearance occurring in November, yet another Interim UFC title has been added to the fray. Long time contender and slick Jiu-Jitsu player Tony 'El Cucuy' Ferguson was last week matched up against rising star Kevin Lee at UFC 216 for the Interim crown, meaning only a trilogy bout between McGregor and Diaz would prevent the MMA meeting of the victor. Ferguson, an aggressive, pace-pushing opponent, has swept through almost all challengers as of recent times, dispatching Edson Barboza and decisioning compatriot RDA to note. October 7th opponent Lee, approaching his 25th birthday, featured in a hugely controversial meeting with Michael Chiesa last time out, securing a bizarre RNC victory, with Mario Yamasaki receiving criticism for an apparent early stoppage. Both men aren't regarded as fierce strikers, with Ferguson more than likely the more dangerous on the feet, but against 'The Notorious' both men would face considerable danger in terms of striking.

Khabib Nurmagomedov: The undefeated Dagestan sambo specialist presents certainly the most dangerous matchup for McGregor at 155lbs today, but whether or not he can actually make the event is a major question. McGregor has labelled Khabib as a ''pull out artist'' with 'The Eagle' failing to make an appearance at UFC 209 for his Interim Lightweight championship bout with the aforementioned 'El Cucuy'. Khabib has an incredibly high level grappling background, and has yet to be truly pushed to his limit in the octagon. Coincidentally, Nurmagomedov's most recent walk to the octagon came in November as well, where he overcame an early right hand from Michael 'The Menace' Johnson to submit the American with a Kimura. Johnson is quite a heavy hitter, wobbling Khabib but doesn't hold the same power as Conor so that poses the question, if McGregor tagged Khabib, would the Dagestan native fall? Both men have repeatedly expressed their willingness to face eachother, with Conor said to be eyeing a title defence against Khabib in Russia.

Paulie Malignaggi boxing match: Most certainly the most bizarre, yet clever matchup possibly awaiting McGregor would be a meeting with recent foe Paulie Malignaggi. The Showtime analyst and colour commentator served as a brief sparring partner for McGregor ahead of his meeting with Floyd Mayweather, but split ties with 'Team McGregor' after some images and videos of Paulie in some compromising positions were released, much to the dismay of the former WBA and IBF Welterweight king. Both men argued over the particulars of sparring footage which seen McGregor smashing Paulie with a straight left, seemly stunning the Brooklyn native, before Malignaggi fell to the canvas in the later exchange. Malignaggi pleaded how he was ''pushed down'' rather than ''knocked down'' so the tension and anger is most certainly evident. Not only would the pre fight antics present some real gems, the payday for Conor may realistically gazump the next pay cheque he would receive if he were to defend his UFC title.

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