McGregor and Diaz fought an epic duel in Las Vegas (USA). Photo: Disclosure/UFC
Conor McGregor avenged the defeat suffered in March against Nate diaz and got back at his rival in the main fight of UFC 202, an event held this Saturday night (20), in Las Vegas (USA). In an epic fight full of alternatives, the UFC featherweight champion came out on top in a tight decision from the judges.
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From the start, the Irishman showed tactical and technical discipline against his rival. Contrary to what happened in the first duel, McGregor attacked the American cautiously, with the intention of avoiding fatigue in the initial moves of the duel.
McGregor relied on low kicks, which caused major damage to Diaz's right thigh, as well as precise combinations with his hands. In the first two rounds, Conor applied three knockdowns in Nate, whose face was already badly injured, but in all of them, he avoided going to the ground to continue the sequences.
However, the film of the first duel began to be repeated in the final moments of the second round. McGregor started to feel tired and Diaz capitalized, which made him grow. In the third round, Diaz had a big advantage, especially in the final moves, when he almost knocked McGregor down with blows.
The final two rounds were slower paced, but with both fighters showing initiative at all times. Diaz took advantage of the clinch, but McGregor, on the other hand, defended his rival's takedown attempts. The North American only got the takedown in the last seconds of the fight, when it was too late to try anything.
In the end, two side judges pointed to McGregor's victory, with the third pointing to a draw. Thus, the Irishman avenges his only defeat suffered in the octagon, when he lost by submission at UFC 196.
Even so, both athletes were in favor of the idea of a third fight. “Surprise, surprise, the king is back! He is a tremendous competitor, he demanded the most from me. I'm open to a trilogy, but this time it will be at 70 kg [the first two were at 77 kg]. Now it will be on my terms”, said the Irishman, who heard Diaz’s approval. “I’m in, let’s go to the third”, he replied.
Complete UFC 202 results:
MAIN CARD
Conor McGregor derrotou Nate diaz in the majority decision of the judges (double 48 to 47, 47 to 47)
Anthony Johnson knocked out Glover Teixeira with punch at 13s of R1
Donald Cerrone defeated Rick Story by technical knockout at 2:02 of R2
Mike Perry knocked out Hyun Gyu Lim with punches at 3min38s of R1
Tim means defeated Sabah Homasi by technical knockout (punches) at 2:56 of R2
PRELIMINARY CARD
cody garbrandt knocked out Takeya Mizugaki with punches at 48s of R1
Rachel Pennington defeated Elizabeth Phillips by unanimous decision of the judges (triple 30 to 27)
Artem Lobov defeated Chris Avila via unanimous decision (triple 30 to 27)
Cortney Casey submitted Randa markos with an armbar at 4:34 of R1
Lorenz Larkin defeated Neil Magny by technical knockout (kicks and elbows) at 4min08s of R1
Colby Cogington defeated Max griffin by technical knockout (punches) at 2:28 of R3
Marvin vettori submitted Alberto Uda with a guillotine at 4:30 of R1
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