Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz may not be the superfight we had been anticipating, but it’s absolutely among the most exciting matchups we might have hoped to watch as MMA fans. UFC 196 won’t only include McGregor vs Diaz, it will likewise see Holly Holm place her bantamweight title at stake for the very first time when she chooses on Miesha Tate.
Conor McGregor (-400) vs Nate Diaz (+300)
We’ve got the featherweight champion taking on the fifth ranked lightweight in a welterweight fight. Yeah, this fight is going to be a little odd.
McGregor makes his initial appearance in the Octagon since dusting Jose Aldo in 13 seconds to win the featherweight title. Since joining the UFC back in 2013, McGregor is 7-0 with six of the victories coming through stoppage.
Much was made of McGregor’s striking style and the crushing knockout power the Irishman owns. His standup game is based within a vertical stance which allows McGregor to throw his teammates without even exerting surplus energy or time. He’s become an expert at using his teammates to generate the space he can use to open his arsenal of attacks. The swiftness and brutality of those attacks are unparalleled in MMA today.
The largest question mark in this fight is size. McGregor is fighting at 170 pounds for the first time in his profession; a jump of 25 lbs in contrast to his last fight, and will be in a hit disadvantage for the first time inside the UFC. ‘The Notorious One’ consistently held a distinct advantage in size in the lower weight classes, but Nate is roughly four inches taller and includes a two-inch achieve advantage.
Diaz possesses a fighting style that’s uniquely suited to him along with his brother Nick. He is a volume fighter and foremost on his feet, meaning he cries in bunches and loves to be competitive. The Stockton-native is good at maintaining his distance, fast moving into throw a flurry and then return to space. Diaz pairs his striking skills with a phenomenal ground game that has led to 11 of his 18 career wins coming via entry.
Despite his strong ground game, Diaz is not able to truly utilize it thanks to some bad wrestling game. It appears that Diaz will often attempt to taunt his opponents to a position where they go to the takedown and that he will perform his job. Though his striking sport is solid, it is far from ideal since it entails a very simple attack with couple of unpredictable components.
Can Diaz submit McGregor? Yes. Will he get the opportunity to? Not likely.
This is predicted to be a standup affair and though Diaz is a capable striker, he does not possess the same degree of abilities that McGregor does. Conor has good movement skills, which should help him conquer his attain drawback and pick up the win in this one.
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