McGregor v Diaz is latest in a long list of fights that shows that fighters who are the best in gym can have problems when they meet adversity in the ring/cage. Think Penn, Ronda and Lesnar to name some of the high profile examples.
While McGregor was the better fighter for over 7 of the 9 1/2 minutes in the fight and landed the harder shots when Diaz landed that 1-2 half way thru the 2nd round that rattled McGregor, he just wasn't use to being in trouble and tried to fight his way out expecting Diaz to crumble from more of the same. Diaz just stayed calm and eventually when McGregor went for a panic takedown he made he pay the biggest price to an elite grappler.
Diaz on the other hand was hit hard multiple times ( and possibly hurt as bad as Conor was) and never panicked because he trains with better fighters and has been in these positions time after time in the gym. Training with people that are better than you gives that experience, from knowing how to hide that you are hurt to conserving your energy when you are on top.
McGregor has great sparring partners but other than Gunnar Nelson none are top 20 in the UFC.I am not saying that McGregor should move camps to be honest I think SBG are on the right track but because it is young gym, it doesn't have the experience or network of top level veterans for fighters to learn off. There is only one way for McGregor and SBG to get there and they are on the right road!
Diaz was excellent in the first round at not overcommiting to his punches, knowing that McGregor would be quicker and respected the counter. McGregor tried to take his head off with every punch.
Diaz kept the jab working to force McGregor to respect the range while defending. McGregor was reaching every time he attacked because of Diaz's jab this contributed greatly to McGregor slowing down. Diaz knows from training with guys better than him how to limit the damage and try and slow them down. McGregor, on the other hand, tries harder every time he punches to knock Diaz out because his training partners normally fade when he increases the work rate. Against Diaz this just tired McGregor out and broke him mentally as the more he worked the more he got punished.
Diaz was brilliant at doing what the Diaz's brothers do best hitting you with 50% shots until it starts getting easier and easier to land. McGregor either forgot that Diaz is next to impossible to ko or just got caught up in the moment, either way you can tell the moment in the second round he realised it was lost. The smack talk stopped and the confidence was gone. He was about to lose, he knew it and had no idea how to stop it.
What does this mean for both Diaz and McGregor?
Diaz just showed Millions worldwide how tough he is and how good his boxing and bjj are but we saw nothing the seasoned fan didn't already know about him. The UFC need to book fights for Diaz that will excite the casual fan .
McGregor lost but how many fighters have the chin or boxing smarts that Diaz has? Not many at FW or LW! Only Diaz could beat McGregor in the way we saw Saturday night! Edgar, Aldo and RDA are capable of beating McGregor but not the same way as Diaz did!
While McGregor was the better fighter for over 7 of the 9 1/2 minutes in the fight and landed the harder shots when Diaz landed that 1-2 half way thru the 2nd round that rattled McGregor, he just wasn't use to being in trouble and tried to fight his way out expecting Diaz to crumble from more of the same. Diaz just stayed calm and eventually when McGregor went for a panic takedown he made he pay the biggest price to an elite grappler.
Diaz on the other hand was hit hard multiple times ( and possibly hurt as bad as Conor was) and never panicked because he trains with better fighters and has been in these positions time after time in the gym. Training with people that are better than you gives that experience, from knowing how to hide that you are hurt to conserving your energy when you are on top.
McGregor has great sparring partners but other than Gunnar Nelson none are top 20 in the UFC.I am not saying that McGregor should move camps to be honest I think SBG are on the right track but because it is young gym, it doesn't have the experience or network of top level veterans for fighters to learn off. There is only one way for McGregor and SBG to get there and they are on the right road!
Diaz was excellent in the first round at not overcommiting to his punches, knowing that McGregor would be quicker and respected the counter. McGregor tried to take his head off with every punch.
Diaz kept the jab working to force McGregor to respect the range while defending. McGregor was reaching every time he attacked because of Diaz's jab this contributed greatly to McGregor slowing down. Diaz knows from training with guys better than him how to limit the damage and try and slow them down. McGregor, on the other hand, tries harder every time he punches to knock Diaz out because his training partners normally fade when he increases the work rate. Against Diaz this just tired McGregor out and broke him mentally as the more he worked the more he got punished.
Diaz was brilliant at doing what the Diaz's brothers do best hitting you with 50% shots until it starts getting easier and easier to land. McGregor either forgot that Diaz is next to impossible to ko or just got caught up in the moment, either way you can tell the moment in the second round he realised it was lost. The smack talk stopped and the confidence was gone. He was about to lose, he knew it and had no idea how to stop it.
What does this mean for both Diaz and McGregor?
Diaz just showed Millions worldwide how tough he is and how good his boxing and bjj are but we saw nothing the seasoned fan didn't already know about him. The UFC need to book fights for Diaz that will excite the casual fan .
McGregor lost but how many fighters have the chin or boxing smarts that Diaz has? Not many at FW or LW! Only Diaz could beat McGregor in the way we saw Saturday night! Edgar, Aldo and RDA are capable of beating McGregor but not the same way as Diaz did!
