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What more can be said of featherweight champion Conor McGregor?
His UFC career has been a fabulous explosion of accurate striking and sharp-tongued wit.
Superlatives were invented to describe people like McGregor, at 19-2 with 17 of those wins by way of KO/TKO, he is riding a fifteen-win streak.
It hasn’t seemed long since ‘Notorious’ made his UFC debut (4/6/13), halting Marcus Brimage’s night by TKO in just 1:07. Since then he has gone 7-0 taking the interim FW belt from Chad Mendes in June of 2015 and then December 12th he KOd the UFC’s only FW Champ, Jose Aldo in just thirteen seconds to be the undisputed FW Champion.
McGregor has only been pushed to the final bell just once in his 21-fight career, a unanimous decision over Max Holloway (8/17/13) in his second UFC fight.
In fact, beside Holloway only two other UFC opponents have made out of the opening round. Chad Mendes made it to 4:57 of the second round before referee Herb Dean rescued him from McGregor’s rage, Denis Siver saw 1:54 of the second round (1/18/15) before ‘Notorious’ put him away by TKO.
So what does the featherweight King decide to conquer next? Well he had his heart set on challenging for the UFC’s Lightweight belt at UFC 196, but Raphael dos Anjos was forced to pull out of the bout, just two weeks before, due to a broken foot.
Enter Nate Diaz, the thirty year old, Cesar Gracie Black Belt, who couldn’t wait to ink the deal. Short notice for Diaz has forced the bout to be fought two weight classes up for McGregor, at welterweight. Diaz has competed at WW and is 2-2.
Facing the taller Diaz, McGregor finds himself in unfamiliar territory, usually enjoying a reach advantage, Diaz has two inches on him there, he will be looking up at the six foot tall Diaz.
Conor has a two-inch advantage in leg reach, an unusual category which may actually play a role in the fight. McGregor throws many kicks and Diaz has been vulnerable to kicks in the past, leg kicks especially.
In Diaz’s ten losses only a single has come by KO/TKO, a Josh Thompson head-kick in the second round (3:44) 4/20/13.
Nate Diaz is the number-five ranked LW in the UFC and won season five of The Ultimate Fighter.
He has gone 13-8 with ten finishes (8 subs, 2 TKO). Diaz is just 3-8 in fights that go to decision, couple that with Conor’s lone decision win and we have a pair of fighters looking to finish.
Bantamweight belt on the line
It is hard to believe that in Holly Holm’s fourth UFC fight she is defending the Women BW Championship.
‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ is 10-0 with seven wins by KO/TKO. Last time out she KOd the most dominant champion in UFC history, Ronda Rousey, by second round head-kick (0:59) 11/14/15 to win the belt.
Prior to MMA, the Albuquerque native collected multiple Pro Boxing world titles, compiling an impressive 33-2-3 record, including nine KO’s and a kickboxing record of 2-1 (all KO’s).
The jab-favouring champion will enjoy a four inch reach advantage when she faces #2 ranked Meisha Tate.
UFC 196 Saturday March fifth 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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