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Dana cites size as the issue. That's clearly nonsense, as Masvidal isn't any bigger than Nate or Cowboy, and is shorter than both. Masvidal is actually a stylistically good matchup for Conor, in that he's an orthodox striker without a reach advantage.
The real reason is, Masvidal has a real shot at beating Kamaru Usman, while Usman on paper is a horrible matchup for Conor. Wrestling, height, reach, cardio, durability. He checks so many boxes for what constitutes a bad Conor matchup. But he isn't an especially tough matchup for Masvidal, who could conceivably stop the takedown and outstrike Kamaru.
Anyway, the UFC should be crossing their fingers for Masvidal beating Usman. Then they can do Conor vs Jorge for both the WW and BMF title to make the biggest fight of all time.
The question is, in the meantime, what should Conor do?
He's on standby to fill in for the calamitous LW contenders Khabib and Tony. But if that fight stays intact, a potential fight between Conor and the winner wouldn't happen until very late this year. And Conor can't afford that inactivity.
So I think these are the options:
Nate Diaz III
Dustin Poirier II
Justin Gaethje
Jose Aldo II
All winnable fights with heat behind them. I just don't know which of them are available right now.
Nate is an obvious choice. But Nate is coming off a loss, and the fight could happen anytime in the future. So I don't love that option right now.
Poirier is a great option. There's history, it'd be an exciting fight, and Conor would be tipped to get another first round finish. Poirier also has good stock right now, in that he has a not unrecent win over supposed #1 contender Gaethje, and he gave a respectable performance vs Khabib.
Gaethje is another very good option. However Gaethje isn't as well known to the general public, and he isn't an exciting personality. But the fight would be fireworks. Again, Conor would be tipped to get the KO over the hittable Gaethje. However, if it doesn't happen, he'd potentially be in big trouble late. Also Gaethje has some size on Conor. It's a riskier fight.
Aldo would be huge due to the history. It'd give Jose another payday, and that shot at redemption that he's wanted for so long. It'd be an easy win for Conor, so is very low risk. Aldo is on the BW title track, but he'd no doubt put that on hold for a red panty night. The biggest issue with this is his unreliability in making it to the fight.
My favorite options are Poirier or Aldo. Let Nate wait (or fight someone else). Put Gaethje on the LW title hunt, and hope he wins, as Conor vs Justin for the title is money. And as mentioned, give Jorge the Usman fight.
Bucket.
TLDR
Conor should fight Poirier or Aldo next. Masvidal should go for the WW title with a view to a future Conor WW title fight. Gaethje should go for the LW title with a view to future Conor LW title fight.
The real reason is, Masvidal has a real shot at beating Kamaru Usman, while Usman on paper is a horrible matchup for Conor. Wrestling, height, reach, cardio, durability. He checks so many boxes for what constitutes a bad Conor matchup. But he isn't an especially tough matchup for Masvidal, who could conceivably stop the takedown and outstrike Kamaru.
Anyway, the UFC should be crossing their fingers for Masvidal beating Usman. Then they can do Conor vs Jorge for both the WW and BMF title to make the biggest fight of all time.
The question is, in the meantime, what should Conor do?
He's on standby to fill in for the calamitous LW contenders Khabib and Tony. But if that fight stays intact, a potential fight between Conor and the winner wouldn't happen until very late this year. And Conor can't afford that inactivity.
So I think these are the options:
Nate Diaz III
Dustin Poirier II
Justin Gaethje
Jose Aldo II
All winnable fights with heat behind them. I just don't know which of them are available right now.
Nate is an obvious choice. But Nate is coming off a loss, and the fight could happen anytime in the future. So I don't love that option right now.
Poirier is a great option. There's history, it'd be an exciting fight, and Conor would be tipped to get another first round finish. Poirier also has good stock right now, in that he has a not unrecent win over supposed #1 contender Gaethje, and he gave a respectable performance vs Khabib.
Gaethje is another very good option. However Gaethje isn't as well known to the general public, and he isn't an exciting personality. But the fight would be fireworks. Again, Conor would be tipped to get the KO over the hittable Gaethje. However, if it doesn't happen, he'd potentially be in big trouble late. Also Gaethje has some size on Conor. It's a riskier fight.
Aldo would be huge due to the history. It'd give Jose another payday, and that shot at redemption that he's wanted for so long. It'd be an easy win for Conor, so is very low risk. Aldo is on the BW title track, but he'd no doubt put that on hold for a red panty night. The biggest issue with this is his unreliability in making it to the fight.
My favorite options are Poirier or Aldo. Let Nate wait (or fight someone else). Put Gaethje on the LW title hunt, and hope he wins, as Conor vs Justin for the title is money. And as mentioned, give Jorge the Usman fight.
Bucket.
TLDR
Conor should fight Poirier or Aldo next. Masvidal should go for the WW title with a view to a future Conor WW title fight. Gaethje should go for the LW title with a view to future Conor LW title fight.
