In one of the most anticipated rematches quite a while, Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz lived up to the hype and gave us a little more.
The question looming above the rematch, how would either fighter perform with a full camp to prepare for their foe. McGregor added a high output of leg kicks to his arsenal, while Nate simply had more time to train for his opponent.
The fight opened with McGregor landing low kick after low kick, with Diaz checking very few. Toward the end of the second round, McGregor looked to have faded substantially, similar to what happened in their first fight. Diaz was able to land shot after shot, although not all landing cleanly, the pressure of Diaz’ offense clearly wore on McGregor.
In the fourth, Diaz looked to slow himself, while McGregor returned to his leg kicking ways. It would be a close round, Diaz was able to clinch with McGregor and use his weight, which was a factor in McGregor showing signs of fatigue.
In the final frame, both fighters were noticeably tired, Nate Diaz’ was was a bloody mess, and Conor looked to catch a second wind which allowed him to defend Nate’s takedowns, roll with the punches, and keep the fight where he wanted, until the final few seconds when Nate finally landed a takedown.
After the fight, Nate gave Conor a pat on the head and helped him to his feet. When the scores were read, two judges scored the fight 48-47 for Conor, and one judge had it a draw. In the end both fighters would like to see a third fight, but Conor wants it at 155lb.
We have a Trilogy to look forward to! #UFC202 https://t.co/2KyVzxvqoh
— UFC (@ufc) August 21, 2016
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