Conor McGregor's coach wants him to fight unexpected title contender at 170-pounds next

Following Conor McGregor's emphatic victory over Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone in just 40 seconds, the next step for The Irishman hasn't been made as clear as people would hope. In the mind of many, McGregor was expected to call-out Jorge Masvidal and that would be set.

After all, Conor McGregor gets to choose who he faces. He didn't call out Masvidal nor did he make clear who he wanted next. Dana White insisted on the post-fight press conference that he wanted to see Conor McGregor face Khabib Nurmagomedov again or challenge for the Lightweight Championship.

Interestingly, McGregor said that he "felt great" at Welterweight", teasing the idea of staying in the 170-pound division. Nobody else knows how great McGregor feels at 170 better than his coach John Kavanagh.

Conor McGregor's coach appeared on Ariel Helwani's MMA Show following UFC 246 and was posed with the question of who he thinks should be next for the former double-champion.

He revealed that he wants McGregor to face top Lightweight contender Justin Gaethje. And to add to it - he thinks it should happen at Welterweight.

Who would John Kavanagh want Conor McGregor to fight next? Kavanagh to @arielhelwani: "Justin Gaethje at 170. That would be my personal preference.” #HelwaniShow

— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) January 20, 2020

That's certainly an interesting pick. From the look of things, staying at 170 pounds might just be in Conor McGregor's plans. Jorge Masvidal spoke on the same show and seemed to accept that the fight he wants against Conor McGregor isn't happening. As a result, Usman will be his target - a Welterweight title fight that Dana White wants to make as well.

When people pointed out the size difference issues McGregor would face at Welterweight, The Irishman pointed out that Jorge Masvidal is slightly smaller than Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone, acknowledging that Gamebred has a win over "Cowboy" as well.

He also brought up the fact that Masvidal was a Lightweight at one point. As for Justin Gaethje, McGregor said in an interview before UFC 246 that The Highlight is on his list as well. It's a fight that many people love and one that many feel poses a big risk for McGregor due to Gaethje's reckless style of fighting.

There's no denying that it would be an exciting bout, but we're going to have to wait for the first quarter of the year to finish to have any idea what's next for Conor McGregor.