Khabib Nurmagomedov has claimed he knew Conor McGregor wanted out of their fight as soon as they stepped into the cage.
The bitter rivals clashed last October with Nurmagomedov choking out the Irishman in the fourth round to defend his UFC lightweight title.
The pair were then embroiled in a post-fight brawl which saw them both banned as their feud escalated.
Nurmagomedov returned to action in September when he choked out Dustin Poirier while McGregor is expected to resume his career against Donald Cerrone on January 18 in Las Vegas.
The former two-weight champion wants a rematch with Nurmagomedov in the future, but the 155lb champion believes McGregor did not want to fight last time.
“Before the fight, when the referee stood between us giving us instructions, the opponent didn’t look at me in the eyes,” he said.
"At that moment, I realised he didn’t want to be in the cage with me. And before that, he talked a lot.
“He looked at me and made statements. But when we were in the cage, I realised he wanted it to be over as soon as possible.”
Nurmagomedov has also claimed he hadn't enjoyed beating his opponents - until he faced McGregor.
“I had fights in my career where I understood that I could hurt my opponent more, but I’d talk to him, tell him to give up so that I don’t beat him too hard," he said.
“For example, if I had a painful hold where I could break something, I wouldn’t tighten it all the way, it’d just fix it so that the opponent would tap out.
“Because I have no aim to hurt anyone in this sport. Yes, we compete in a very brutal combat sport, but it’s never my goal to inflict a lot of pain on my opponent.
“If I understand that I’m winning, I don’t aim to hurt someone bad. Well, except for one fight.”
McGregor's return to the Octagon, meanwhile, is expected to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
His manager Audie Attar said: “I would say that talks have been progressing. We’ve met them, we’re in close communication with them.
"I would hope that an announcement could happen in the coming weeks, but at the end of the day, it’s still a work in progress.
"He strives for greatness and dreams for things that nobody thought that he could accomplish, and he’s doing that again.
“At the end of the day, that’s the thing people forgot about him; he actually is a competitor. He dares to do things differently.
"That’s what’s exciting. It’s exciting to be a part of that and witness that and see that fire in him again. I love it.”
