When Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz meet in the main event of UFC 196 on Saturday night in Las Vegas, a belt won’t be at stake. The fight will take place, strangely enough, at 170 pounds, which is outside both fighters’ normal weight. Diaz is on a meager one-fight winning streak, while McGregor is the champion at 145 pounds.
No, what’s at stake here are bragging rights and the prospect of an all-timer of a scrap. The two men put on one of the most entertaining press conferences (warning: NSFW language) in the history of the sport after Diaz agreed to step up on short notice to replace injured lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos.
It’s hard to overstate how compelling the stylistic and personality matchup is here, and it’s definitely the selling point for the entire card. The co-main event, however, is also compelling, as newly crowned women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm faces perennial contender Miesha Tate in an excellent matchup. A potential shot at a returning Ronda Rousey and one of the biggest paydays in the history of MMA is at stake.
The rest of the card isn’t outstanding, but it does feature sneaky-entertaining fights. An outstanding women’s bantamweight matchup between talented strikers Amanda Nunes and Valentina Shevchenko opens the main card, while Brandon Thatch and Siyar Bahadurzada should produce violence on Fox Sports 1. In addition, veterans Jim Miller and Diego Sanchez will headline the Fight Pass portion of the event.
Let’s take a look at each matchup.