Conor McGregor: MMA fighter, Irishman, fast talker, soothsayer.
McGregor’s predictions for the outcomes of his own fights have come to pass more than once. He famously called his shot at UFC 194 against Jose Aldo, and before that against Chad Mendes at UFC 189. It led some fans to dub the UFC featherweight champion “Mystic Mac.”
As most fortune tellers will tell you, though, no one is infallible, not even fortune tellers. McGregor had a bit of a market correction this spring when he foresaw a first-round knockout of Nate Diaz at UFC 196. It didn’t go that way; Diaz submitted McGregor in the second.
On August 20 at UFC 202, McGregor has another chance at Diaz. You know what that means—another chance for a prediction. The Irishman did just that Friday during a conference call with reporters, in which Bleacher Report participated.
“I will repay the favor and KO [Diaz] inside the second round,” McGregor said.
McGregor admitted during the call that he got the first prediction wrong. Well, sort of.
“I think that was the wrong thing, to go and expect [a knockout] in the first round,” McGregor said during the call. “And I did go out to KO him in the first round. I marched forward and backed him up against the fence and teed off on his head. I did what I said I would do. But respect to him. … He weathered the storm.
The sequel prediction is an interesting pick for an interesting fight. Although McGregor, 28, tends to compete at 145 and 155 pounds, he went up to the 170-pound welterweight class to face Diaz on short notice. The loss, McGregor’s first in eight UFC bouts and of any kind since 2010, clearly stung. Although there were other potential fights elsewhere—including a defense of his featherweight title—McGregor demanded and received the rematch.
The bout was originally scheduled to headline the blockbuster UFC 200 card, but it fell by the wayside after various conflicts between Team McGregor and UFC officials. That loss is UFC 202’s gain.
To hear McGregor tell it, it’s a virtual must-win fight as well, and he’s been sparring with middleweights to get better accustomed to the size disadvantage he faces against Diaz. As McGregor said on the call:
I’ve faced many defeats in all forms, not just in MMA but in everything. I’ve always come back stronger. We win or we learn, that’s what my coach says, and that’s what we do. I feel I’ve grown as a fighter, I’ve gained some valuable experience. … And now, after that, I brought in heavier people, more experienced jiu-jitsu people to come and push me daily, so I will be experienced for the jiu-jitsu in the later rounds also.
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