Author: admin

After a scintillating UFC 196: “McGregor vs. Diaz” event, MMAmania.com ponders what is next for the main card winners who picked up victories last Saturday night (March 5, 2016) on pay-per-view inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned to the fight capital of the world last Saturday night (March 5, 2016) for the UFC 196: “McGregor vs. Diaz” pay-per-view event at the MGM Grand, featuring a thrilling Women’s Bantamweight title fight between Miesha Tate and Holly Holm, as well as a special Welterweight affair pitting Nate Diaz against Featherweight kingpin Conor McGregor.

In the main event, Diaz proved to be too much for McGregor, choking out “The Notorious” one in the second round of their “Fight of the Night” contest (highlights here). The win for Diaz could earn him a title shot next, while the loss for McGregor essentially guarantees he will return to Featherweight for the time being.

The co-main event was just as intriguing, as Miesha Tate became the new UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion by pulling off a come from behind submission victory over Holly Holm with just 90 seconds left in the fifth and final round.

Check out the highlights here.

With that quick recap of last night’s marquee bouts, it’s now time to play matchmaker with our “Next Matches To Make.”

Winner: Nate Diaz

Who Should He Fight Next: Rafael Dos Anjos

If you beat the king, shouldn’t you take his spot?

Nate Diaz has been a perennial contender in the UFC for nearly a decade, and just put away the cash cow and face of mixed martial arts (MMA) on just 11 days notice.

How could you not give him a title shot?

Having the Diaz brothers in the forefront of MMA is good for the sport, it is great for business, and fantastic for the fans.

Sure Diaz was already taken to school by Dos Anjos, but it was clear he was unmotivated for that fight, as he deemed the Brazilian a “nobody.”

With a belt on the line, you would have to believe Diaz would put everything into the rematch, and provide the fight many hoped we would have seen in their initial showdown.

Plus, who knows if UFC brass can even convince Diaz to ever return following his massive payday.

Dana White himself claimed he doesn’t know where Diaz will go from here.

The one way to ensure he steps back into the cage?

Give him the shot at gold.

Winner: Miesha Tate

Who Should She Fight Next: Holly Holm or Ronda Rousey

UFC’s Women Bantamweight division is absolutely wide open following Miesha Tate’s victory at UFC 196.

With Ronda Rousey apparently not returning any earlier than October, “Cupcake” could find herself rematching Holm at UFC 200 in just a few months.

The likely No. 1 option for UFC brass would be to set up the Rousey vs. Tate trilogy fight at UFC 200, but if that doesn’t happen, some other wildcards are in the mix as well.

Amanda Nunes didn’t do enough at UFC 196 in my mind to earn a shot at gold, but she is still an option.

The most unlikely option would be a rematch with Cat Zingano, who defeated Tate via TKO back in their respective UFC debuts in 2013.

Considering Zingano has been on the sidelines since her quick loss to Rousey at UFC 184, it isn’t likely she will be first in line for another shot at gold.

Expect to see Tate vs. Rousey once again.

Winner: Ilir Latifi

Who Should He Fight Next: Corey Anderson

Ilir Latifi and Corey Anderson came out victors at UFC 196 — albeit in unimpressive fashion — and the duo should face off against one another their next time out.

Anderson barely scraped by Tom Lawlor in an uneventful affair, while Latifi thoroughly handled Gian Villante via decision just one fight later.

Considering how shallow the Light Heavyweight division is, a few more wins for either man could position themselves to crack the top five.

I say match them up now, and see who deserves a spot in the division’s top 10.

Winner: Amanda Nunes

Who Should She Fight Next: Julianna Pena

Amanda Nunes had a great platform at UFC 196 to stake her claim as the No. 1 Women’s Bantamweight contender, but after limping to the finish line following a poor third round outing, it is unlikely “The Lioness” will be fighting for gold anytime soon.

Nunes’ performance will certainly keep her behind both Holm and Rousey in any title discussions, meaning she will likely have to take another fight before vying for UFC gold.

With Julianna Pena currently riding a three-fight win streak of her own, I believe UFC matchmakers will square them off in a No. 1 contender bout next.

For complete results from UFC 196: “McGregor vs. Diaz,” including play-by-play updates click here.

Check out what Nick Diaz had to say about his brother’s big win last night in Vegas.

Going into UFC 196, there was a ton of trash talk between headliners Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz. They even engaged in a mini-brouhaha at the media day. So when it finally came time to get down to business, you knew that the winning side would have a ton to say in the aftermath.

Enter Nick Diaz.

Nate’s big brother has been a surprisingly quiet figure this week for the most part, but the former UFC welterweight title challenger made a point of celebrating Nate’s win with a classic chant:

Post fight thoughts from @nickdiaz209 #UFC196 pic.twitter.com/lhlVisHASy

— UFC (@ufc) March 6, 2016

Nate submitted McGregor in the second round of their UFC 196 headlining welterweight  bout last night. Nick is still currently suspending following a disputed positive test for marijuana metabolites after a bout with Anderson Silva last year. He is eligible to return to the octagon in the summer, and will probably get a high-profile fight soon after.

Most of the mixed martial arts (MMA) tuned in to UFC 196 — which went down last night (Sat., March 5, 2016) in Las Vegas, Nevada — which meant they witnessed Miesha Tate finally obtain Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) gold by choking out Holly Holm in the fifth and final round.

Video highlights here.

Ronda Rousey, though, wasn’t interested in watching the fight, as she was too busy attending the Pro Wrestling Guerilla (PWA) show in Reseda, California as evidenced by these photos courtesy of PWMania.com.

Hey, I get it, when I worked at McDonald’s as a teen, that last thing I wanted to do was go eat there on my days off.

Still, most will find it surprising that “Rowdy” wouldn’t tune in to see the person who dethroned her attempt to defend her belt against her bitterest of rivals. If nothing else for scouting purposes.

Nevertheless, UFC president Dana White kept Ronda in the loop by texting her the outcome of the title fight. Upon hearing the news that Tate had choked Holm unconscious, “Rowdy” had this to say via White’s comments.

“Ronda wasn’t watching the fight. I text Ronda and she said ‘What happened?'” White said. “I said ‘Miesha just choked her unconscious’ and she said ‘Looks like I’ve got to get back to work.'”

Oh, Ronda.

With two wins over Miesha, one would think “Cupcake” now holding the title would be good news for Ronda, as she seems to have the new champion’s number. And while that may be the case, Rousey was actually pulling for Holm.

That’s because the judoka wanted to be the one to hand Holm her first-ever loss and get some sweet revenge in the process. For now, Rousey will have to settle for a trilogy fight against Miesha, which White confirmed will go down later this year.

Not a bad consolation prize.

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor addressed his fans (and detractors) in an Instagram post made one day after his loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 196.

Conor McGregor’s attempt to defeat Nate Diaz at welterweight in the UFC 196 main event ended in a rear-naked choke loss, the first setback of his UFC career. The bad news is he suffered an upset defeat in the face of all of his pre-fight trash talk, but the good news is that he’s still the featherweight champion, and he is planning to return to 145.

In a statement posted on his official Instagram page on Sunday, McGregor thanked his supporters, acknowledged the existence of his “haters”, called Jose Aldo and Rafael dos Anjos “pussies”, assured everyone he’s still going to have steak for breakfast, boasted his PPV and gate success, and proclaimed that he will rematch Diaz down the road.

I stormed in and put it all on the line. I took a shot and missed. I will never apologize for taking a shot. Shit happens. I’ll take this loss like a man. I will not shy away from it. I will not change who I am. If another champion goes up 2 weights let me know. If your tired of me talking money, take a nap. I’ll still be here when you wake up with the highest PPV and the gate. Still talking multi 7’s. Thank you to the true support and fuck the hate that came out of the woodwork. I love it all. Its still steak for breakfast. I’ve been here many times in my life in some form or another. I’ll eat it all and come back stronger. Aldo you are a pussy. Dos anjos you are a pussy. When the history books are written, I showed up. You showed up on Twitter. To the fans! Never ever shy away from challenges. Never run from adversity. Face yourself head on. Nate I will see you again.

A photo posted by Conor McGregor Official (@thenotoriousmma) on Mar 6, 2016 at 12:52pm PST

In case the text isn’t appearing in the embed, here’s a repost of it in full:

I stormed in and put it all on the line. I took a shot and missed. I will never apologize for taking a shot. Shit happens. I’ll take this loss like a man. I will not shy away from it. I will not change who I am. If another champion goes up 2 weights let me know. If your tired of me talking money, take a nap. I’ll still be here when you wake up with the highest PPV and the gate. Still talking multi 7’s. Thank you to the true support and fuck the hate that came out of the woodwork. I love it all. Its still steak for breakfast. I’ve been here many times in my life in some form or another. I’ll eat it all and come back stronger. Aldo you are a pussy. Dos anjos you are a pussy. When the history books are written, I showed up. You showed up on Twitter. To the fans! Never ever shy away from challenges. Never run from adversity. Face yourself head on. Nate I will see you again.

I don’t know about you, but it doesn’t have to happen now, or even this year, but McGregor and Diaz put on a hell of a show on short-notice and I’d be interested in a rematch (not on short notice and at lightweight) somewhere down the line.