The dual upsets stunned a sellout crowd and one of the biggest pay-per-view audiences in the history of mixed martial arts. Holm, who was winning the fight, said she felt good but, was a little bit lazy in the final round.
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“I think if [McGregor] wins impressively [Saturday], he doesn’t even go back to [145 pounds]”, the UFC President said on Friday in Las Vegas. Holm agreed to take on Tate, the very definition of a risky matchup for less experienced fighters.
“I hold the key to the fight game”. “My mentality is that it doesn’t matter how many times I get knocked down”. Miesha Tate vowed to ruin the chances of a Ronda Rousey & Holly Holm rematch, but few took her seriously. “I said, ‘Miesha just choked her unconscious.’ She said, ‘Looks like I gotta get back to work'”. Tate slipped her arm under and Holm, defiant till the last, went out on her shield by refusing to tap. In this photo taken, Wednesday, March 2, 2016, UFC women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm talks with reporters during open workouts for UFC 196 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. She’s tougher than nails. I texted her and she said, “What happened?”
Despite a late-scratch in the main event, UFC 196 would still probably be one of the most anticipated MMA fights of the year as Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz heat up their rivalry.
The line for the fight now at SBG Global has McGregor as a -450 favorite with Diaz currently sitting at +360.
The loss was McGregor’s first since November 2010, and it put a blemish on the loquacious Irish face of the UFC and the best-paid fighter in this rapidly growing sport. “It was meant to be”, Tate gushed to the media at the post-fight press conference. Diaz is a perennial contender in the lightweight division but his fight with McGregor is being contested at 170 pounds (welterweight) due to the short-notice nature of the matchup. “I’m a lion in there, and I’m going to eat you alive”.
A heavy favourite to defend her title and pave the way for a mouthwatering rematch with Rousey later this year, her defeat leaves those plans in total disarray. “I’ll fix those mistakes and come back stronger”. That was until she defeated the UFC Champ! “I had to be patient”. “She’s capable of catching anyone at any moment”. She’s a calculated fighter. However, Tate believes Holm has a weakness she could exploit come fight night. Although Tate controlled the second round on the ground and got close to a finish, Holm picked apart Tate with punches for the other three rounds. Everything changed when Tate finally landed a desperate takedown attempt and got Holm’s back.
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“I want to fight Miesha tomorrow”, Holm said. I feel it is right to go back down and remind them of what I have achieved. “It would be nice to make that fight if the fans were interested and wanted to see it. Obviously, they would”. Tate also dropped a request to the Seahawks to let her raise their famous “12th man” flag in the future.
