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Conor McGregor Goes Berserk on 'C--t' Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 Presser

Alec Nathan@@AlecBNathanX.com LogoFeatured ColumnistSeptember 20, 2018

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 20: UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov (L) and Conor McGregor (R) face off after the UFC 229 press conference at Radio City Music Hall on September 20, 2018 in New York, NY. The two will meet in the main event on October 6, 2018 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ed Mulholland/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Ed Mulholland/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images

Conor McGregor is back, and so are his surreal press conferences.

On Thursday, McGregor channeled his boisterous, trash-talking ways and took aim at Khabib Nurmagomedov during a meeting with the media at New York's Radio City Music Hall in advance of their lightweight title clash Oct. 6 at UFC 229

The presser, which was closed to the public, featured McGregor in vintage form as he recounted his April bus attack against Nurmagomedov's team prior to UFC 223. 

"If you got off that bus, you'd be dead right now and I'd be in a cell," McGregor said, per MMAFighting.com's Marc Raimondi

McGregor again referenced the bus melee as he tried to get in Nurmagomedov's face (Warning: contains profanity)

UFC @ufc

"You said send location... HERE I AM. RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!" #UFC229 https://t.co/bkZWeUY1FL

The Notorious also made sure to promote his new whiskey, Proper Twelve, while taunting his opponent: 

MMAFighting.com @MMAFighting

McGregor asks for a plastic cup to drink some of his Proper 12 whiskey — and he gets one. #UFC229

MMAFighting.com @MMAFighting

McGregor tries to offer some Proper 12 to Khabib, who doesn't want any part of it. McGregor downs the cup himself. #UFC229

When Nurmagomedov declined the drink, McGregor shot back and called him a "proper c--t." 

And then there were the predictions: 

Bleacher Report @BleacherReport

.@TheNotoriousMMA’s prediction? “Domination” in 1 round *NSFW* (via @UFC) https://t.co/XlR7GpmMeD

"I'm going to truly love putting a beating on this little glass-jawed rat," McGregor added, per MMA Fighting.

Nurmagomedov, who was calm in the face of McGergor's strident barbs, sat by and picked his spots during the verbal sparring session. 

Most notably, the lightweight champ focused on McGregor's pursuit of checks over belts: "You come for money, I come for legacy," he said, according to Bloody Elbow

"What is this guy going to do October 6?" he added. "Does he think whiskey will help him?"

Nurmagomedov (26-0, 8 KOs) won the lightweight belt in April thanks to a unanimous decision defeat of Al Iaquinta at UFC 223.

In order to retain the strap, he will need to fend off Mcgregor (21-3, 18 KOs) when the Irishman returns to the Octagon for the first time since he downed Eddie Alvarez via second-round TKO at UFC 205 in November 2016.