The manager of Ultimate Fighting Championship superstar Conor McGregor has said the Irishman "really didn't give two s--ts" whether his rematch with Nate Diaz at UFC 200 came at 170 pounds or 155 pounds.
It's been confirmed the pair will contest their second bout at the welterweight limit of 170 pounds, the same weight at which Diaz submitted McGregor at UFC 196, but Audie Attar said The Notorious had no preference, per Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting:
At the 11th hour, before we signed the bout agreement, [McGregor] said, 'Look, I'm hearing everybody. If everybody wants to do 155, fine. Let's do 155. The contract was already written at 170. And so, in Conor's defence, he really didn't give two s--ts. He really wanted it at 170, because he wanted to prove he could beat him there.
Conor is his own CEO, but intelligently he listens to the people around him and then makes his own final decision. He was trying to accommodate and listen to everybody and be a team player to make this happen.
The appeal of staging a rematch at 155 pounds is clear considering McGregor would be considerably closer to the featherweight limit of 145 pounds, where he still reigns as title-holder after a rampant run through the division.
However, it would appear pride played its part in convincing The Notorious and his team to put forth and accept the fight at welterweight, where the Irishman wishes to prove himself as an equally terrifying force.
Diaz submitted McGregor via rear-naked choke in the second round of their meeting at UFC 196 in March, and the latter undoubtedly suffered a substantial blow to the ego following his first defeat in the UFC.
The Notorious could have dropped back down to featherweight and defended his title, but Attar went on to say the Diaz bout was simply more appealing as it "checked all the boxes":
For him, that loss in itself, because of how he was performing until it went the other way is yet again fuelled by his own self-belief system, confidence and desire to want to continue to push the envelope with his athletic ability and his skills, no matter who is in front of him. It happens to be the guy who beat him. He wants to put the same canvas up and paint a different picture for the audience to watch. And that's what it's all about, really.
Economically, business-wise it makes sense as well. So you check all the boxes.
Instead, Frankie Edgar and Jose Aldo will face off for the featherweight interim championship while McGregor makes a second attempt at stamping his mark on the UFC's heavier classes.
It hasn't sat well with all that McGregor will be free to explore his options at welterweight and go without defending his featherweight title again, but Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden believes a Diaz rematch to be the best decision:
Fighting at welterweight is a higher risk for McGregor, but the rewards are also greater should he earn his redemption at a weight that, at least on paper, is 25 pounds heavier than that at which he made his UFC debut.
There has also been rumblings that McGregor's rise to welterweight could have in part been fuelled by a desire to fight Georges St-Pierre should he come back to the UFC. Commenting on that speculation, Diaz bragged on Chael Sonnen's podcast, You're Welcome, about putting "a big old halt" to those plans (h/t Fox Sports' Damon Martin):
I put a big old halt on that (expletive). Like what are you guys thinking that I'm some (expletive) game to be played with? I've been in this game for too long to be (expletive) with.
Yeah, they had GSP there, they wanted to have this whole GSP/McGregor show bull (expletive). I don't even want to hear that (expletive).
There's a chance the blueprint for that bout may still be in the works should McGregor beat Diaz in July and GSP come out of retirement at some point in 2016, but a substantial hurdle awaits the Dubliner at UFC 200 first.
The winner of Edgar and Aldo's bout will be next in line to get his shot at McGregor's featherweight title, UFC president Dana White confirmed last week, per Martin. However, Paul Dollery of The42 recently pondered whether The Answer poses the same threat as Diaz:
Rematching Diaz at 170 pounds is smart business for The Notorious. Win, and he's proved himself to be a different animal altogether. Lose, and he still sits atop the featherweight throne, right back where he is as we speak, albeit casting a much more human figure as a result.
For McGregor, UFC 200 is about revenge over Diaz above all else, irrespective of the weight category in which he redeems himself.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com
No comments:
Post a Comment