Conor McGregor is preparing to return to the Octagon for the first time in over a year at UFC 257 on Saturday night. The controversial Irishman will face Dustin Poirier in a rematch of their 2014 bout, with McGregor sealing a quick-fire technical knockout victory in their first meeting.

The 32-year-old will be seeking his 23rd career win over his American opponent, who recovered well from the loss seven years ago to eventually become the interim UFC lightweight champion in 2019 before losing his title to Khabib Nurmagomedov five months later.

Should McGregor beat Poirier for a second time, another fight with the undefeated Russian has been tipped for later this year.

Khabib dominated their highly-anticipated bout in 2017, delivering a brutal beating to The Notorious for the first 15 minutes before earning a stunning victory by way of submission in the fourth round.

He initially announced his retirement from mixed martial arts in October immediately after defending his title against Justin Gaethje, but it has been suggested that he could be open to returning for one final outing.

UFC president Dana White has been the most vocal proponent of a second meeting between Khabib and McGregor, with the 51-year-old keen to engineer what could possibly be the biggest fight in the history of the organisation.

White’s relentless pursuit of the potential bout saw him begin negotiations with Khabib when the pair met in Abu Dhabi ahead of the Fight Island 7 event earlier this month.

The UFC supremo has since crossed paths once more with the 29-0-0 lightweight title holder, at a UAE Warriors event where the two parties were spotted engaging in conversation.

White’s ambition to tempt Khabib into another fight was clear to see in a short video clip, during which the former can be heard urging the latter to strongly consider the financial ramifications of such an event.

As the pair were watching a fight in Abu Dhabi, White told Khabib: “This [McGregor’s] fight with Poirier is trending bigger than the fight with you and Conor on PPV.

DON’T MISS

“Imagine what you and Conor would do in another f*****g fight. Just saying… I’m just saying!”

Despite White’s enthusiasm, Khabib recently doubled down on his retirement vow, claiming that a return to the Octagon is not a proposition he is prepared to entertain.

The Dagestani fighter previously revealed that the reason behind his decision to hang up his gloves was the absence of his late father, Abdulmanap, who sadly died last year after being diagnosed with Covid-19.

“I train for myself,” Khabib told reporters earlier this week. “The biggest thing that gives me pleasure is training. I enjoy when I wrestle, run, spar, work on pads, when I work on the punch bags.

“This is what I have been doing all my life, and I will continue to train constantly, as well but if we talk about the fights, they are not a part of my plans.

“They constantly discuss, ‘He will come back, he will not come back’. You know, today we have 2021. A year ago it was 2020. The same time, January, and so much has happened.

“We don’t know what will happen in 2022, 2023, you know, so let’s not talk about it. No one knows what will happen tomorrow.

“I don’t even have any plans for the UFC in the near future. I don’t have any thoughts about preparing for a fight.”