Conor McGregor accepts he gave "no respect" to Khabib Nurmagomedov's upright fighting skills and vowed to put more trust in his own talents if the two wage war again in UFC.
The Irishman failed to regain the lightweight belt he was forced to relinquish due to inactivity as Khabib scored a dominant submission victory at UFC 229.
Khabib's triumph was completely overshadowed by an ugly melee involving the opposing camps after the fight, which has drawn widespread condemnation.
However, in the fight itself McGregor had little answer to Khabib's supreme wrestling skill and was caught with a flush right hand in round two that left him momentarily rocking.
In a lengthy round-by-round analysis posted on Instagram, McGregor says he did no upright sparring in training but promised that he will do things differently if a rematch is granted.
"If I stay switched on and give his stand up even a little more respect, that right hand never gets close and we are talking completely different now," McGregor wrote.
"I gave his upright fighting no respect in preparation. No specific stand up spars whatsoever.
"Attacking grapplers/wrestlers only. That won't happen again. I also gave my attacking grappling no respect. Too defense minded. Lessons.
"Listen to nobody but yourself on your skill set. You are the master of your own universe. I am the master of this. I must take my own advice."
He added: "It was a great fight and it was my pleasure. I will be back with my confidence high. Fully prepared. If it is not the rematch right away, no problem.
"I will face the next in line. It's all me always, anyway. See you soon my fighting fans I love you all."
