Artem Lobov: UFC 223 Booking Likely Influenced by Teammate Conor McGregor

Last week, the Ultimate Fighting Championship announced that former “The Ultimate Fighter” contestants Artem Lobov and Alex Caceres would meet in a 145-pound matchup as part of UFC 223, which is headlined by the interim championship bout between Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

After the announcement, there was speculation that Lobov was added to the bill by the UFC so that the current lightweight champion -- and Lobov’s SBG Ireland teammate -- Conor McGregor would be in the building to face off against the winner of Ferguson and Nurmagomedov.

McGregor has been in attendance for some off Lobov’s previous fights and his presence would definitely add extra spice at the conclusion of the main event when the winner of that bout could potentially square off with the Irishman.

Lobov is 2-4 inside the Octagon and is currently on a two-fight losing streak, with his most recent defeat coming via unanimous decision to Andre Fili back in October. Lobov even admitted after that loss that he wouldn’t be surprised if the UFC cut him.

The Russian Hammer recently spoke with MMA fighting about the UFC’s decision to put him on the UFC 223 card and admitted it probably factored into their decision.

“I’d say they definitely might have thought about it,” Lobov told MMA Fighting. “It probably did [factor into the decision], and why not?

“They flew Conor out to see Aldo’s fight in Brazil before when he was defending his belt against Chad Mendes, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we see history repeating itself in Brooklyn. I guess they did kind of think about that.

“I’m not too concerned about why they booked me, if I’m honest. I need to fight and I need to win. That’s my main focus now. Whether it’s in the UFC or elsewhere, you need to [win] in this sport.”

As a proud Russian who resides in Ireland, Lobov is just happy to be given another bout inside the Octagon and the opportunity to fight in front of the vocal fight fans in New York.

“This is a great card,” Lobov said. “London would have been a good one as well with it being Paddy’s Day and London being so close to Dublin. I would have loved to be there, but this is just as good.”

“The Irish and Russian communities are huge in New York, so this is truly one of the only places where I can fight in front of all of my fans. I really feel like I represent both Ireland and Russia when I fight, so this is a good opportunity to represent both nations.”

UFC 223 takes place on April 7 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.