Nick Diaz wasn’t in the octagon with Nate Diaz’s corner men tonight, but he watched keenly as his younger brother trounced Conor McGregor. Also Werdum calls McGregor a prostitute… The madness of UFC 196 is still just settling in, as we saw one champion dethroned in epic fashion, and another beaten in a division he put
Nick Diaz wasn’t in the octagon with Nate Diaz’s corner men tonight, but he watched keenly as his younger brother trounced Conor McGregor. Also Werdum calls McGregor a prostitute…
The madness of UFC 196 is still just settling in, as we saw one champion dethroned in epic fashion, and another beaten in a division he put on 25 pounds to fight in. First up, the meat on the bone, Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz. The main event in Las Vegas, Nevada did not disappoint, as the two trash talking welterweights put it on the line in a two-round thriller. In the first round at least, it looked as though McGregor’s striking was on point, but perhaps he got overconfident coming in to the second frame.
Diaz began landing with regularity in the second round, and McGregor’s legs locked out from a big left hand. All of a sudden, the confidence sunk out of ‘The Notorious,’ and it was replaced with panic as the fight went to the mat. Diaz quickly snaked his way to the full mount where McGregor tried to shrimp escape. Forgetting to tie up the leg of Diaz with his own, he gave up his back to the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt after eating some ground and pound, it was as good as over from that moment.
Nate Diaz throws a straight left hand during his UFC 196 submission victory over Conor McGregor
The rear naked choke locked up, and before going to sleep like Holly Holm did in the main event, McGregor chose to tap out. The 209 rejoiced, including Nate’s older brother Nick Diaz, who’s hilarious reaction was captured by Karyn Bryant of MMA Heat, check it out:
Stockton Motherf*ckers!
But Nick Diaz wasn’t the only UFC fighter reacting to McGregor vs Diaz and Tate vs. Holm, as you’ll see on the next page.
continue to see jose aldo and fabricio werdum trolling conor mcgregor
The scale of anger that Conor McGregor has generated among his own peers became apparent after UFC 196, with light heavyweight star Jon Jones one of several to mock him on social media in the wake of his shock loss.
McGregor was beaten by Nate Diaz on …
The scale of anger that Conor McGregor has generated among his own peers became apparent after UFC 196, with light heavyweight star Jon Jones one of several to mock him on social media in the wake of his shock loss.
McGregor was beaten by Nate Diaz on Saturday night in a welterweight clash, as he submitted in the second round. And given the bullishness with which the Irishman approached the fight, it’s little surprise there’s been a significant reaction from the MMA world.
As reported by the42, earlier this week McGregor had claimed he’d consider himself to fill the top-nine spots in a list of the planet’s best and “maybe Jon [Jones] and Mighty Mouse [Demetrious Johnson] is 10.” Both Jones and Demetrious Johnson, ranked first and second in the UFC’s pound-for-pound standings, reminded the featherweight champion of his comments:
McGregor ventured into the welterweight division for the first time against Diaz, and while he was in control in the first round, complacency crept in.
When his opponent landed, the Irishman clearly felt the punches, allowing Diaz to take his back and apply the submission. Here’s a reminder of the sensational finish to the main event:
Naturally, McGregor—who earned the name “Mystic Mac” in some quarters after predicting how his fights would go—was extremely confident of securing a win ahead of the bout and, as the old adage goes, pride often comes before a fall.
It was a fall many others in the UFC seemed pleased to see, especially in the 170-pound division. Welterweight fighter Mike Pierce praised Diaz on his Twitter feed, suggesting plenty will have been delighted to see this outcome:
Another welterweight, Matt Brown, also posted gleefully after the bout had finished, suggesting McGregor’s loss may prompt him into cashing in on some of his well documented assets:
It’s no surprise the fighters from this weight class are happy to see McGregor downed, as he didn’t have especially kind words for them prior to the fight.
“I got middleweights coming in fresh trying to wear me down. So, why not go up?,” he said of fighting at welterweight before UFC 196, per SevereMMA.com (h/t Ryan McKinnell of Yahoo) “They get slower and they get less free. They get stiffer. Even more stuck than the lightweight division.”
Still, even lower down the divisions fighters were happy to see the Notorious had lost, including the man he was originally scheduled to face at UFC 196, lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos:
Additionally, featherweight icon Jose Aldo, who McGregor knocked out in 13 seconds at UFC 194, had some harsh words for the Irishman, who he challenged to a rematch at UFC 200, *warning, expletive language used*:
McGregor himself admitted after the bout that it’s no surprise to see fighters revelling in his defeat, although he doesn’t quite understand the thinking behind it, per BT Sport UFC:
Even the greats of the UFC have lost, including Johnson, Dos Anjos and Aldo. It’s an unforgiving discipline that makes the pursuit of perfection extremely difficult to accomplish, and while there’s little harm in poking fun at McGregor for the time being, to write the man off completely would be naive.
Not surprisingly, many professional fighters celebrated Conor McGregor’s submission loss to Nate Diaz (watch the full video highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., March 5, 2016) UFC 196 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. After all, ‘The Notorious’ had essentially verbally laid waste to almost every top contender ranging
Not surprisingly, many professional fighters celebrated Conor McGregor’s submission loss to Nate Diaz (watch the full video highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., March 5, 2016) UFC 196 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. After all, ‘The Notorious’ had essentially verbally laid waste to almost every top contender ranging from 145 all the way up to 170 pounds during a meteoric rise to the lofty position of the UFC’s biggest star.
And this week, he took it to an even further level when he declared that the world’s Nos. 1 & 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighters, former light heavyweight champion Jones and dominant longtime flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, didn’t deserve a spot other than 10 on that list because he was ‘Nos. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8, and 9’ himself.
Now, apparently Jones and ‘Mighty Mouse’ took offense to this, as ‘Bones’ posted the following picture on Instagram of himself and the 125-pound king cageside at the fights. It was quite the stinging jab from Jones, who has immediately reinserted himself at the top of the MMA trash-talking game heading into his highly anticipated rematch with Daniel Cormier at UFC 197.
In the meantime, check out his hilarious needling of ‘Notorious’ right here:
Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm just might have some company when it comes to UFC stars taking mini vacations.
That’s right. Nate Diaz might just need a break following his incredibly gutsy showing (see it) against featherweight champi…
Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm just might have some company when it comes to UFC stars taking mini vacations.
That’s right. Nate Diaz might just need a break following his incredibly gutsy showing (see it) against featherweight champion Conor McGregor in a welterweight headliner atop the UFC 196 pay-per-view (PPV) card last night (Sat., March 5, 2016) inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
At least that’s what UFC president Dana White led viewers to believe when he spoke with the FOX Sports 1 crew.
“We might never see him again [laughs]. He made so much money, you might never see Nate Diaz again. Somebody asked him, ‘What are you going to do with your money?’ He said, ‘I’m buying a yacht.’ So he might be going out to sea and it might be the end of Nate Diaz,” White said.
Captain Jack Diaz?
All jokes aside, the Stockton slugger dug deep and persevered in this emotionally-charged meeting with “Notorious.” The loud-mouthed Irishman bloodied Diaz in round one (recap) with powerful left hands and uppercuts, before the tide turned in round two, which is when the rangy strikes of the latter started to land with consistency.
McGregor crumbled to the mat and that’s when Diaz cinched up the rear-naked choke for the tap late in the frame.
By all accounts, Diaz made out like a bandit. The 30-year-old pocketed $500,000 to show and $100,000 for capturing both the “Fight of the Night” and “Performance of the Night” awards.
Could UFC 196 have been anymore unpredictable? I don’t think so.
Stick with MMAmania.com for continuous coverage of the fallout behind what was UFC 196: “McGregor vs. Diaz” by clicking here.
Another fight with history-making consequences has wrapped with UFC 196, and we’ll evaluate the ramifications, right here. UFC 196 was already a hotly anticipated event, and one could say that the loss of lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjo…
Another fight with history-making consequences has wrapped with UFC 196, and we’ll evaluate the ramifications, right here.
UFC 196 was already a hotly anticipated event, and one could say that the loss of lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos actually improved the card in terms of interest and potential for chaos after he was substituted by Nate Diaz. What we got was an event that had some outstanding finishes and some middling fights here and there, but it was all worth it. History was made, just not how most people expected it.
Winners
Miesha Tate – Ronda Rousey losing her title was the best thing to happen to the longtime bantamweight veteran, and despite being counted out by many, she took on the seemingly-unbeatable new champion and put her to sleep to take her crown. Tate finally reached the top of the mountain with her tenacity, durability and focus under pressure. She fought like a champion, kept her composure and deserved to win with that performance. Good on her, and here’s hoping we find out how the top of that division shakes out very soon.
Nate Diaz – Wow. Nate and Conor engaged in a battle of who could be more wild and reckless, and as usual when talking about the Diaz brothers, it only fuels them even more. Nate cashed out big here figuratively, and literally. Given his desire for fighting for the lightweight title – an idea seen as somewhat absurd after his back-to-back losses to then-champion Benson Henderson and Josh Thomson as well as eventual champion Rafael dos Anjos – he has a very solid case here. He beat a surging Michael Johnson that appears to be near his prime as a fighter, and just beat a resilient and tough opponent that is essentially the UFC’s poster child. Plus, it was done in emphatic fashion with a finish on top. He’s riding a wave that seems to lead to an inevitable shot at a belt despite the fact that this was out of his normal division. Regardless, he’s very deserving of it.
Conor McGregor – What? You thought he’d be listed as a loser? You done goofed. Brother got paid thick stacks to stay in the main event and get what we can reasonably expect to be monster PPV numbers. Yes, he lost – but it was outside his division on less than two weeks’ notice. It may not pass for fans like you or me as good reasoning, but it’s defensible PR. No title was on the line, and we all watched anyway. Guess what? It was awesome. He’s still the biggest star in the sport, still transcends the usual MMA media to end up on CNBC of all places to hype the fight. You think Max Holloway could get that kind of exposure to the sport? And that’s Max Holloway we’re talking about – one of the most phenomenal talents we have in the sport overall. He’ll go back to featherweight and keep putting on fantastic fights while pulling down major bank. That’s still a winner.
Amanda Nunes helped get ahead in the muddy waters of the middle of the women’s bantamweight pack, taking on the very talented and durable newcomer Valentina Shevchenko. Amanda was entirely dominant on the ground and kept a good pace during the bout, and looking at the standings for all other divisions it seems reasonable that she at least get a shot at Tate if the UFC still wants a Holm/Rousey rematch. As mentioned above in the Tate segment, it remains to be seen how that will play out.
Diego Sanchez taking on Jim Miller was a great coup for a Fight Pass prelim, and neither fighter looked shot at all. Sanchez remained active, pushed a pace and ate some combinations, but came through with his control and beat a very tough submission grappler that got the better of some of the exchanges. Both fighters are in the win column for being that gutsy in a bout that could have conceivably been a draw or split decision.
Nordine Taleb bounced back in a big way after his submission loss to Warlley Alves in August with a brutal knockout against Erick Silva. The punch hit the top of the head and ragdoll physics collaborated with gravity for the rest. Taleb is one of those Tristar guys that comes in better almost every time, and he showed a great deal of patience to implement his counter game and blast Silva after catching that kick. Great performance from him and good to see him back on track to a successful run.
Siyar Bahadurzada shook off the cobwebs and put a beating on Brandon Thatch in a brutal dogfight after more than two years out of action. The fact that he was able to work Thatch over with strikes by closing the distance wasn’t that surprising, but that he would get rocked and would show off a much-needed ground game for a submission win was a very pleasant surprise. Great to see him come back healthy and ready to do what he loves again, even if the win didn’t come by the method he prefers, and even if he wasn’t happy with his performance.
Vitor Miranda put a brutal beating on Marcelo Guimaraes, punishing him for remaining inactive as he was initially working on the takedown against the cage. The elbows against the cage softened him and visibly dazed Guimaraes, but Miranda used his accuracy and power to take over and break Marcelo’s will until he was out on his feet. Speaking of which…
Referee Chris Tognoni – We look at terrible reffing all of the time, but we have to show respect to Chris Tognoni for recognizing how Marcelo Guimaraes was a standing punching bag after those two punches that followed that monster kick. I give the guy grief for looking like infamous MMA fraud Matt Bailey, or like “Dennis The Menace, alimony edition”, but he did a great job to ensure fighter safety, and that need to be applauded.
We don’t get a chance to say this very often, but how about that Darren Elkins? His fight with Chas Skelly was likely a bout that nobody was really looking forward to compared to other fights on the card, but it had some great moments in a matchup where both guys really went for damage and submission attempts every chance they got. Elkins still has some fire and his conditioning looked great.
Among the various picks I got wrong for this week, Teruto Ishihara is the one I’m second-happiest I got wrong. I figured there was no way he’d be able to deal with Erosa’s pace and reach, or his submission game. That went out the window with great movement and a thundering KO that went over Erosa’s shoulder and he never saw coming. Great to see him get a win under his belt after the draw in his last fight against Mizuto Hirota.
Big ups to Jason Saggo for working his ground control bit by bit to end with a beautiful submission win. A lot of fans focus on the finish, but this was an example of the journey being the real payoff for grappling fans, and he did an excellent job from one moment to the next in keeping his weight on Salas and dominating to get the tap in the end.
Finally, out of respect for the god himself, Ilir Latifi is still minotaur with his horns shaved down. The man is beautiful and I refuse to speak ill of him in any shape or form. All hail Ilir, Ilir is our light.
Losers
Holly Holm – Damn. That actually hurts to write. Holm is one of the real treasures of the sport and her work ethic and talent are truly elite. As they say, though – styles really do make fights. Miesha’s style was enough to push the pace with the grappling and to be crafty with shifting phases to get control on the ground and win. Ronda Rousey’s striking defense couldn’t deal with Holm’s offense, but this ain’t Ronda. Despite the work with Izzy Martinez, Miesha’s wrestling was very different than Ronda’s Judo attack. If Miesha’s MMA wrestling served her well to beat Sara McMann’s undisputedly elite wrestling in an MMA fight, it may be something Holm wasn’t 100% ready for. Even with the top-level wrestlers at Jackson/Winklejohn, MMA wrestling just isn’t the same as wrestling in general. Holm did well to pull away in the fourth and fifth rounds until the last takedown by keeping her distance and landing great shots, but that’s the fight game. And the fight game is cold and unforgiving. She deserves praise for handling both her title win as well as her title loss with grace and dignity, and she will undoubtedly be back soon to fight for that belt. When she does, it’s gonna be great.
Conor McGregor – Wait, don’t leave! Hear me out. Why would a guy that criticized a Diaz brother for being predictable play into his strengths by trading with him in the pocket like that? McGregor’s over-reliance on his chin proved to be a massive flaw as he got rocked and went for the desperation takedown. Of course, a sloppy takedown against a grappler of that caliber is only going to make your day worse. And it did. I stand by everything I said above, but from purely a fight IQ standpoint, that was a terrible idea even with all the big shots he did land on Nate. I even had Conor winning the first round based on damage, but again – that’s the fight game. Also, he didn’t really “go up two weight classes” since he wasn’t fighting a guy that usually fights at 170 like a Carlos Condit or Matt Brown. Hyperbole can be fun, but in this case it was just dumb.
Erick Silva – Look, the man is over the age of 30, he’s not a prospect anymore. Outside of Jason High, he hasn’t beaten a single fighter with a decent UFC record during his time with the promotion outside of a shot Koscheck that was on a sharp decline and Jason High. Put him in with a top 15 guy and he gets smoked. As mentioned in the livethread of the event, it’s amazing that the best highlights of his career are the ones he’s on the losing end of. Fun fighter, but totally unreliable and a lot of untapped potential.
Corey Anderson did not deserve to win that fight. This is what you get even with boxing judges that move on to judge MMA, given that Lawlor was ruining Anderson on the feet in the first round and Anderson still managed to get a 30-27. I’m starting to suspect judges don’t know which fighter is which and score with no regard for silly things like that.
Gian Villante continues to have problems with his cardio and can’t seem to show any fluidity between his striking and his wrestling. This didn’t do him any favors as he continues to march along in light heavyweight limbo for the time being. Brandon Thatch is probably getting his walking papers after this loss, and he still hasn’t shown any real growth on the ground in all of his time in his UFC run. Marcelo Guimaraes might stick around, but he got beat up hard, so he may need some extra time off. Justin Salas got dominated here, and he’s got some work to do.
Neither
Valentina Shevchenko moves to 1-1 in the UFC, and is still an exciting and methodical striker that was perhaps a bit too careful tonight. She doesn’t lose much here, and she’s better on the ground than most people think. Unfortunately, her ground skills weren’t good enough to handle Amanda Nunes, and that needs work. Her stock doesn’t take much of a hit here. Chas Skelly saw a four-fight win streak get snapped with three finishes in there, so a setback like this isn’t that bad, either. As for Tom Lawlor, the brother got robbed. Can’t fault him for that. Julian Erosa is still young and also falls to 1-1 in the UFC, which shows he’s got room to grow as he’s still young and has a lot of talent and upside.
Last night (Sat., March 5, 2016), Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz scrapped at UFC 196 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In a fantastic win, Diaz submitted his opponent. Find out how below!
Ultimate Fighting Championship…
Last night (Sat., March 5, 2016), Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz scrapped at UFC 196 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In a fantastic win, Diaz submitted his opponent. Find out how below!
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Welterweight warriors Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz clashed last night (March 5, 2016) at UFC 196 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
McGregor has been untouchable at Featherweight, but this was a completely new challenge for him. If the Irishman managed to successfully jump up two full weight classes, it would be raise his super star status to new heights.
Looking to play spoiler was Nate Diaz. The younger Diaz brother has been a staple of the Lightweight division for years, but he did make a brief foray to 170 lbs. in the past. Regardless of all the weight details, Diaz was simply looking to shut McGregor up and prove his own dominance.
Mission accomplished.
McGregor struck first, landing a long left hand. However, Diaz immediately stepped into the clinch and drove his opponent into the fence. Despite the size advantage, McGregor was able to create separation quickly, and the two return to flinging punches at each other.
The advantages that both fighters held coming in were quickly made obvious. Diaz’s extra height and reach were clearly a big benefit for him as it helped him land effectively. On the flip side, McGregor’s speed and athleticism were on full display, as his punchers were quicker and did cut Diaz open.
Interestingly, Diaz scored with a takedown near the end of the round but allowed himself to be rolled over without much resistance. Regardless of that brief exchange, it was a rather close round in which both men scored with some hard shots. That said, McGregor did more damage and likely won the round.
McGregor started the second round violently, scoring with some big punches immediately. After just a couple minutes, Diaz’s face was covered in blood.
However, the high output of big power shots were clearly taking their toll on McGregor’s cardio. “The Notorious” fighter was definitely slowing down, and Diaz capitalized on that with a piston-like straight left hand that stunned the Irish fighter. As usual, Diaz swarmed aggressively, firing off a dozens of punches and working his opponent over in the clinch.
McGregor tried to hang in range and did land some of his sledgehammer left hands. However, Nathan Diaz was undeterred and continued to press forward, causing the Irish striker to shoot for his one double. From there, it was classic Diaz grappling, as he attempted to lock up his usual guillotine. Instead, he used it to reverse into the mount.
Once there, Diaz dropped some blows, and McGregor surrendered his back. Afterwards, the result was predictable, as Diaz quickly locked in a rear naked choke.
This is an example of how styles make fights. McGregor has been able to excel when he fights opponents reaching for his chins, and when he’s able to swarm his opponent with power shots. Against a lankier opponent who’s comfortable in a brawl, neither of those paths to victory were readily available.
Indeed, McGregor did land some great punches, kicks, and generally showed off his stellar kickboxing. However, McGregor commits to his power shots and throws in high volume. Together, those two elements simply are not sustainable. Unless he scored an early knockout or switched up his approach, McGregor was always going to gas trying to trade with Diaz.
And there’s few people better than swarming a gassed fighter than a Diaz brother.
Diaz is such a unique fighter that it’s difficult to predict his career trajectory. Against some Lightweight contenders, Diaz will look utterly ineffective and undeserving of his ranking. Against others, he will dominate and look unbeatable.
Depending on who’s champion at any given time, Diaz has a great chance or no chance to become champion. Either way, he’s much closer to that opportunity following this win.
For McGregor, it’s something of a reality check. He may indeed still be a challenge for Rafael dos Anjos — again, styles make fights — but the idea of him running all the way up to Welterweight to challenge Robbie Lawler was and is absurd.
This fight also showed that McGregor’s chin is not unbreakable. It’s not weak or any such nonsense like some will claim in the coming weeks, but nor can he take punches freely. Following this loss, we may see McGregor return to his counter punching roots rather than keep walking opponents down.
Frankie Edgar should be next for the Irishman back at Featherweight.
Last night, Nathan Diaz shocked the world by stopping Conor McGregor in the second round. Where does the Stockton-native go from here?
For complete UFC 196 “McGregor vs Diaz” results and play-by-play, click HERE!
