As you probably know by now, after submitting Conor McGregor at UFC 229, Khabib Nurmagomedov jumped into the crowd and incited a brawl. McGregor also got involved and the two of them have been temporarily suspended since, waiting for the Nevada Athletic Commission to come to a determination as to punishment for the infractions. Next week, McGregor is finally set to plead his case to the NAC, and assuming he gets no further suspension, will be ready to return to fighting. And he’s got his next opponent ready to go.

Donald Cerrone has been open about chasing a fight with McGregor for the last few years, and following his big win over Alexander Hernandez at UFC Brooklyn this past weekend, McGregor said he’d be down to make it happen. Of course, both McGregor and Nurmagomedov’s teams have made public overtures towards an immediate rematch between the two, but with that fight seemingly not in the offing, McGregor has doubled down on fighting ‘Cowboy,’ responding to Cerrone’s gentlemanly call out on social media and saying he was ready to “party.”

Lately, McGregor’s social media presence has been more about his personal brand of whiskey but a fight with Cerrone offers ‘Notorious’ an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone: have a “good knock” while promoting his whiskey. A win also might put him right back in line for a title shot. Plus, Dana White seems to like the idea, so pending the NAC meeting next week, McGregor vs. Cerrone could soon be a reality.

---

MUST-READ STORIES

TUE. Alexander Gustafsson’s team says Jon Jones has ‘essentially received a use exemption’ after UFC 232 positive drug test.

Honor. Khabib Nurmagomedov says he attacked Dillon Danis at UFC 229 because Conor McGregor’s other coaches were ‘too old’.

Disappointed. Bellator’s Scott Coker ‘very disappointed’ by CSAC decisions on Jon Jones drug tests.

Regrets. Fedor Emelianenko has ‘absolutely’ no regrets about never fighting in the UFC.

Bracket. ONE reveals bracket for Lightweight World Grand Prix, featuring Eddie Alvarez.

---

VIDEO STEW

The MMA Beat.

Pico trying to box too.

KSW’s best submissions of 2018.

Bas has a thing called Combat Karate, which is basically Karate in the Yamma Pit.

Nikki Bella has accepted the offer it seems.

Free fight.

TTTHS.

---

LISTEN UP

UFC Unfiltered. Interviews with Cory Sandhagen and Stephen Thompson.

Obviously Fight Talk. Discussing McGregor-Cerrone, the new belt, and the 125 lb. division.

---

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Just fight already.

Fight.

Imagine being one of the most highly paid professional athletes in the world and opening up as a betting dog to a 50 year old Professional TV Shouter. Derek keeps taking those Ls.

Adorable.

Call out.

Classic.

No idea why the UFC hasn’t given this man a fight.

---

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Honorio Banario (14-7) vs. Lowen Tynanes (9-0); ONE Championship, Jan 25.

Amir Khan (11-4) vs. Ariel Sexton (12-4); ONE Championship, Feb 22.

Ev Ting (16-5) vs. Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev (6-1); ONE Championship, Feb 22.

Eddie Alvarez (29-6) vs. Timofey Nastyukhin (12-4); ONE Championship, March 31.

Lando Vannata (9-3-2) vs. Marcos Mariano (6-4); UFC 234, Feb. 9.

Damir Hadzovic (12-4) vs. Marco Polo Reyes (8-4); UFC Prague, Feb. 23.

---

FINAL THOUGHTS

This weekend could be the final ride for The Last Emperor. I shamelessly hope he turns the clock back for one more night and can then ride off into the sunset. Instead we’re probably in store for a terribly depressing slaughter. Ah well, such is the life of an MMA fan.

Thanks for reading, enjoy the fights, and see y’all on Monday.

---

EXIT POLL

---

If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let him know about it! Also follow MMAFighting on Instagram, and like us on Facebook!