In the second McGregor-Diaz scrap, McGregor came out with a much more disciplined gameplan in order to deal with Diaz’s considerable size advantage. Handing McGregor his first loss in the UFC, an immediate rematch between the two was almost a foregone conclusion as soon as the first fight ended.ĭid Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz 2 Live up to the Hype? The fight was considered an instant classic in large part due to Diaz’s ability to take an unbelievable amount of punishment and continue coming forward at McGregor. While McGregor still came in as the heavy betting favorite, Diaz used his massive size advantage and legendary chin to weather an early onslaught of ferocious McGregor shots before turning the tides and battering McGregor – who was exhausted by the end of the second round. Making matters more interesting, McGregor allowed the fight to go down at 170 pounds in part because it would have been nearly impossible for Diaz – who fights at both lightweight and welterweight – to safely make the cut to 155 pounds on such short notice. Dos Anjos was forced to pull out of the fight with a foot injury and Diaz, then the 10th ranked lightweight challenger, was the only fighter willing to take on McGregor with such short notice. Instead, McGregor was initially set to take on Rafael Dos Anjos for the lightweight belt. Who Will Conor McGregor Fight in the Meantime?ĭiaz and McGregor was never supposed to happen. With a potential third fight featuring a rematch with current lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov on the horizon, McGregor seems to have an extremely ambitious trio of return fights set in his sights with a major determining factor being the outcome of Diaz-Masvidal at UFC 244. While McGregor has never been afraid of the challenge – he fought Diaz twice at welterweight – the step up in size poses a serious hurdle for McGregor to overcome. McGregor, a natural featherweight, did the bulk of his damage two weight classes below where Diaz and Masvidal have done their best work. McGregor laid out his comprehensive plan to treat 2020 like a season and fight three times in the calendar year.ĭiaz and McGregor have notably locked horns twice before, though Masvidal and McGregor have yet to face off.

Though almost certainly taking a warm-up fight in his return on the 18th, McGregor has mentioned that he is keeping an eye on the winner of Diaz-Masvidal for his second fight in 2020.

Diaz vs masvidal 2