Can you imagine how many sound bites a full-length promotion of Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz would have generated? McGregor might have met his match when it comes to mic work. Diaz can hold his own with anyone when it comes to trash talk and mind games.
The question is: Can he beat the Notorious One in the Octagon at UFC 196 on Saturday? McGregor was supposed to challenge Rafael dos Anjos for the UFC lightweight title, but the latter injured his foot and had to pull out. That would have been a great fight, but this one is really good too.
Take a look at the pre-fight press conference: (Warning: video contains NSFW language)
McGregor, who holds the UFC Featherweight Championship, is jumping up two weight classes to face Diaz at 170 pounds. That’s almost Henry Armstrong-like, and it’s just another detail that makes this fight so compelling.
Here’s a look at the tale of the tape:
Best Wins
McGregor Puts Aldo to Sleep in 13 Seconds
The staredown lasted almost as long as the fight. McGregor destroyed one of the UFC’s most respected and dominant champions in record time at UFC 194. It was the quickest victory ever in a UFC title fight.
The previous record was held by Ronda Rousey, who defeated Cat Zingano in just 14 seconds. McGregor had already become arguably the most popular fighter in the promotion leading up to the fight with Aldo.
His victory made him a legend. Nothing that happens from here on out can change that.
Diaz Chokes Out Jim Miller
With a resume that includes fights against just about everyone of note in or around his weight class over the last 10 years, it’s hard to pick Diaz’s best wins. He is the season five winner of The Ultimate Fighter, but we’ll look at a win that happened after the show as his best.
The victory over Miller at UFC on Fox 3 stands out as the biggest because it gave Diaz a shot at the 155-pound title against then-champion Benson Henderson at UFC on Fox 5.
Diaz submitted Miller—a noted submission artist—in the second round via guillotine choke. Though Henderson completely dominated Diaz in his next fight, the victory over Miller did more for the Stockton bad boy’s career than any other win.
Worst Losses
Duffy Submits McGregor
McGregor is undefeated in the UFC, but he does have two losses in his career. Both of them came by submission.
His most recent defeat came at the hands of current UFC lightweight Joseph Duffy back when both men were competing in the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship promotion in November 2010.
Duffy forced McGregor to tap from an arm-triangle choke with 38 seconds remaining in the first round. Here’s a look at the fight from Rip Under on YouTube:
McGregor has won 15 in a row since the defeat.
The Punk Stops Diaz
Diaz has only been stopped via strikes once in his career. It happened in April 2013 against Josh “The Punk” Thomson at UFC on Fox 7.
Thomson—who isn’t known for his striking power—dropped Diaz with a head kick and finished him off with punches. It was Diaz’s second loss in a row and sent him tumbling down the 155-pound rankings.
Best Weapon
Aside from being a battle between two of the UFC’s most colorful personalities, this is also a clash of two very different styles. Even without the trash talk, this would be an interesting fight.
McGregor’s Stand-Up Skills
There may not be a fighter in the world who is as skilled as McGregor on the feet. His combination of balance, speed, power and accuracy makes him the most dangerous man in the world of MMA when it comes to pure striking.
Diaz’s Jiu-Jitsu
Diaz has excellent boxing skills, but his bread and butter is his ground game. That’s especially the case in this matchup with McGregor. Diaz isn’t athletic enough to try to trade with McGregor.
His best chance is to get the fight to the ground where he figures to have a huge grappling advantage. The longer it stays on the feet, the less chance Diaz will have to win.
Who Wins?
McGregor is beatable, and there are more than a handful of guys between 155 and 170 pounds who can get it done (Rafael dos Anjos, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Tony Ferguson, Rory MacDonald and Stephen Thompson, to name a few), but Diaz isn’t one of them.
The Notorious One will pick Diaz apart from the outside with level-changing kicks en route to a second-round TKO win.
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