John Kavanagh Favours Frankie Edgar Fight For Conor McGregor's Return

Esther Lin
Coach John Kavanagh has outlined his preffered matchup for McGregor's return.

SBG Ireland head coach John Kavanagh has told how if he could play matchmaker for the UFC, he would like to see former two-weight world champion 'The Notorious' Conor McGregor, return against one-time lightweight champion Frankie 'The Answer' Edgar. Speaking with Oscar Willis from The Mac Life at the unveiling of the new Straight Blast Gym facility on Sunday, coach Kavanagh outlined his willingness to see the matchup which has been brewing since McGregor's rise through the ranks of featherweight circa 2015.

"I think him (Conor McGregor) and Frankie Edgar would be a great fight. I think it was in the works when Conor was kinda going on that featherweight tear. He's an ex-champion, a great fighter. If it was me, I would love to see the Frankie Edgar fight this year if possible. And then go on another run in 2020. Frankie has a style that's very difficult to deal with. But it's also one that we're somewhat familiar with. Even from his first fight with (Marcus) Brimage. This small, fast guy, quick hands, wrestling. Frankie's just been in there with everybody. World champion, beaten legends like B,J. Penn and so on. I just think that's a great matchup for the fans and for me. I'd love to see it."

McGregor vs. Edgar was briefly rumoured to take place after the Dubliner captured the featherweight championship at the end of 2015, but a move to the lightweight division soon after in pursuit of a second title pumped the brakes on any meeting. Edgar instead secured a rematch with former champion Jose Aldo at UFC 200 with the interim 145-pound title up for grabs. With McGregor in attendance, Aldo exacted a precise five-round counter display to take a unanimous decision.

Edgar, who only recently challenged Max Holloway unsuccessfully for the featherweight championship, confirmed how he would be moving to bantamweight, with a clash alongside perennial division contender Aljamain Sterling discussed. The 37-year-old New Jersey native hasn't competed at the lightweight limit since 2012 in in a decision defeat to Benson Henderson, but has told how he would take the fight with McGregor, even if he had to make the welterweight limit. Taking to his official Twitter account just three days ago, Edgar explained how he would say "yes" to a fight with the Crumlin native.

@FrankieEdgar: "Hey @TheNotoriousMMA is it true that you've been asking to fight me? If so, the answer is always yes on my end. Let's make it happen."

SBG staple McGregor, has campaigned for a rematch with fierce rival Khabib Nurmagomedov ever since his UFC 229 loss to the Dagestani, but the consensus remains, he must first return to the win column for the first time since 2016 before he clashes with Khabib once more. Apart from a bout with Edgar, a rematch with 2014 opponent Dustin Poirier has been teased, along with a number-one contender's meeting with Justin Gaethje who recently steamrolled 'Cowboy' Cerrone.

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