March - 2016
SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
12
“The Notorious:”
The current 145 lb. czar who
moved up two weight classes,
yet again befuddled the mass-
es; starching Diaz in the open-
ing stanza, and to boot, in
spectacular fashion—as he said
he would, courtesy of “Mystic
Mac” and his crystal ball.
At this point, the world is his
oyster (when was it never?),
and he’s also cemented his sta-
tus as the “Game”. You know
what? After that monumental
performance, I see a McGregor
belt in the offing (that’s paral-
lel universe type thinking). All
the same, the 27-year-old now
holds the aces of spades.
So what happens thereafter?
Will McGregor *(20-2 MMA,
8-0 UFC) wait for Rafael dos
Anjos to recover from his foot
injury, thus granting the Brazil-
ian a second chance at defend-
ing his lightweight strap?
Will he drop back down to his
own division and give Jose Aldo
his much-desired rematch?
Failing that, how about giving
an “Answer” to Frankie Edgar?
And finally, will he ascend
towards the stacked welter-
weight division to duke it
out with the “Ruthless” one;
170-pound champion Robbie
Lawler?
I’m no “Mystic Mac.” A crystal
ball I have not. And one thing’s
for sure, I don’t possess that
inimitable all-seeing eye either.
Nevertheless, my gut feel-
ing steers me in the direction
of Lawler. Let’s be honest, as
things stand, he’s the “Money
Fight” for McGregor.
209 Son:
Can you believe it? The no. 5
ranked lightweight in the world
shocked the MMA strato-
sphere; rocked it to its very
foundations. In an astonishing
turn of events, the Stockton
brawler forced McGregor to
tap out via keylock, thus turn-
ing the UFC on its head; Dana
White’s included.
With only eleven days’ notice
to prepare, Diaz, in one fell
swoop of submission ingenu-
ity, Diaz *(19-10 MMA, 14-8
UFC) finally brought a shudder-
ing halt to the McGregor train.
And if you thought “The No-
torious” had the Zuffa-based
promotion on lockdown, well
get a load of this: not only did
the 30-year-old Diaz just hand
the company’s money-making
machine, star attraction and
fugleman a dead man’s hand;
aces and eights. He now gets
the keys to that enviable Bu-
gatti Veyron, to drive wherever
he so pleases; riding shotgun
is a thing of the past for this
homie.
So what happens thereafter?
Will he give McGregor a re-
match?
Will he return to his home;
the 155 weight class, and frog
jump McGregor for a tilt at dos
Anjos’s lightweight belt?
Will he stay at 170 (for a short
while) and test the division’s
waters, as in Stockton slap his
way to an immediate title shot
against “Ruthless?”
Diaz has three mouth-watering
money fighting prospects star-
ing him slap bang in the face.
Nonetheless, my business acu-
men (or lack thereof) suggests
there’s only one trajectory for
Nathan Donald Diaz to take;
the money-coated road leading
to the inveterate greenback-
spinning Irishman, one Conor
Anthony McGregor.
Conor McGregor
(Esther Lin/MMA Fighting)
Nate Diaz
(Dave Mandel/Sherdog)
