Manager for McGregor, Ferguson Calls Lightweight Title Unification Bout ‘Inevitable’

Audie Attar, who represents both Conor McGregor and Tony Ferguson under the Paradigm Sports umbrella, believes that the lightweights are destined to meet in the Octagon.

Exactly when that 155-pound championship unification bout will happen remains a mystery, however.

“The sport is one where they’re gonna compete,” Attar said on Michael Bisping’s 'Believe You Me’ podcast. “If you have clients in the same weight class and they’re the top of the division, they’re gonna meet. . . With Tony and Conor, it’s inevitable. You have the lightweight champ and the interim lightweight champ, so that’s a fight that’s naturally gonna happen.”

McGregor claimed the lightweight throne with a second-round stoppage of Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in New York last November. He has yet to defend the title, but after earning a blockbuster payday for a boxing match against Floyd Mayweather on Aug. 26, options are plentiful for the Dublin native. While Ferguson, who won interim gold against Kevin Lee at UFC 216, is certainly a top candidate, a potentially lucrative trilogy bout with Nate Diaz also looms. McGregor could also go back to the Sweet Science if nothing piques his interest in the UFC. As the promotion’s biggest draw, “The Notorious” one has the ability to call the shots like no fighter before him.

With all that in mind, Attar believes Ferguson deserves a shot at McGregor. He just can’t say if it will be next.

“No, I can’t say [who McGregor will fight next]. Here’s what I will tell you, Tony earned a shot at the belt. He won the interim lightweight title. Conor doesn’t shy away from a challenge,” Attar said. “The Nate fight does make sense, obviously, because of the trilogy, they never fought at 155, but they both make sense in their own respective way. However, I do believe that when [McGregor and Ferguson] go at it, it will, in my opinion, validate the belt system. It will validate what a championship belt is all about.”