This fight will never happen. The reason friendship.
Mixed martial arts is about respect and there is nothing greater than the respect between Khabib and Islam in so many ways. UFC is about matchups and numbers and figuring out who the best in the world is.
Pondering who the best in the world is at lightweight is not a tough question. Khabib Nurmagomedov is simply the greatest. However if you want to bring up the topic, Islam Makhachev is not far below Khabib. He also is so close to Khabib that he knows how he fights and trains on a level no other competitor knows. These two train together and both must of learned from each other, another reason why they are so close.
So you have to give Islam Makhachev a chance in a fight versus Khabib Nurmagomedov don’t we? Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Islam Makhachev is about as good as a matchup we could propose. Would the current Makhachev beat the Nurmagomedov that destoyed McGregor. What about Khabib today, he’s lost a lot of momentum as a fighter. Would he be able to come back now and recapture what made him the legend he is today?