Here’s how it unfolded.
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Conor McGregor has praised his opponoent Nate Diaz after defeating the Californian in their rematch at UFC 202 in Las Vegas on Saturday night. Their two bouts so far have been contested at welterweight (170lbs).
The back and forth punch fest continued for what seemed like an eternity, exhausting both fighters. The judges scored it 48-47, 47-47, 48-47.
The Irishman edged Diaz by majority decision 47-48, 47-47, 47-48, hitting back at critics who claimed Diaz was sure to beat him again.
While the entire MMA world wants to see a Conor McGregor-Nate Diaz rubber match, UFC president Dana White is pumping the brakes on a trilogy fight. Instead of forcing Diaz to drain himself down to 155lbs with only ten days left before fight time, “The Notorious” featherweight champion agreed to a bout at the welterweight limit of 170lbs, putting himself at a distinct disadvantage in the eyes of most observers. Now he wants a third fight on his terms. I came up to 170 [pounds], now you’ll come back to 155 and we’ll finish what we’ve started. He’s a hell of a competitor.
Diaz, unsurprisingly, says he thought he should have had the decision. “Hey good job today, Conor, but we’re going for three”, said Diaz.
McGregor put that down to the resilience of Diaz: “He took them (punches) better than I expected”.
Will the third Diaz fight be next for McGregor, or will he go back down to Featherweight to defend his title against the man he dethroned in 13 seconds, current interim champion Jose Aldo?
Following the fight, McGregor made the statement that a third fight is now necessary to find out who the better fighter truly is.
Anthony Johnson received $135,000 and another $135,000 as a bonus for his win over Glover Teixeira in the co-main event.
“Then about two weeks after that I was just sparring boxing and I really hurt my rib”.
Get ready for a fight for the ages.
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And bantamweight prospect Cody Garbrandt notched his fifth UFC win with a devastating first-round knockout over veteran Japanese fighter Takeya Mizugaki.
