Conor McGregor's 5 most impressive victories

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Conor has a lot of critics, but they can’t deny his talent

Conor McGregor is an extremely good mixed martial artist and that's still a bit of an understatement.

The Irishman has put in some incredible performances over the course of his career, and it seems as if his best days may well still be ahead of him if he decides to continue on with the UFC.

Still, as with many top fighters, some of his triumphs were better than others.

That's not to discredit anything he's done, either - it's just that some of the occasions in which he had his hand raised inside of the octagon were even more fantastic than the last. He really is a modern day phenomenon within the UFC, and at this point, it seems as if the company themselves can't even tell what he's going to do next.

So with his future being so uncertain, the best thing that we can do right now is look back at his body of work and praise it.

Obviously, the guy doesn't need an ego boost, but what kind of analysts would we be if we didn't appreciate some of the best fights from one of the most talked about fighters in the last few decades?

With that in mind, let's take a look at Conor McGregor's five most impressive victories.


#5 Max Holloway

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McGregor-Holloway was a fascinating clash

Let's get this out of the way right off the bat - we want to see Conor McGregor face Max Holloway again and we don't care who wins it.

The two put on one hell of a show during their first encounter and it was one of Conor's biggest victories to date. Ironically, it was also one of only two times during his UFC career that he was taken to a decision.

Also read: Mystic Mac: Why Conor McGregor will go down as one of the best

So why was it so good? Because it turns out that McGregor tore his ACL midway through the fight.

Naturally, that's going to lead to some pretty uncomfortable scenarios for the remainder of the bout, but McGregor soldiered on and still managed to grind out a fairly comprehensive victory against one of the most promising young stars in the company. Take a bow, Notorious One.

Onto a win that was short and sweet.

#4 Jose Aldo

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Poor old Aldo

Never in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship has a fighter got inside the head of his opponent as badly as Conor did with Jose Aldo.

The Irishman wound Aldo up so much to the point where by the time their fight came around, Aldo was a shadow of his former self. If you need any evidence of that, just go back and watch the clash itself.

You can see it on YouTube - most likely because it lasts no more than 15 seconds.

Conor connected on a devastating shot that ensured the fight lasted less time than it takes to get up and walk into your kitchen. After all of the build-up and all of the hype, this was an unbelievably impressive statement for McGregor to make against the Brazilian.

Now to a man who actually fought in place of Jose on short notice.

#3 Chad Mendes

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McGregor handled the Mendes fight brilliantly

Preparing for a fight with a couple months notice is one thing, but doing so with around two weeks to adjust your training patterns is a different animal altogether.

That was the task facing Conor when Chad Mendes was put in front of him, and yet he still managed to overcome the odds. Why? Because he's Conor freaking McGregor, that's why.

After a first round in which Mendes controlled the pace of the fight, it seemed as if McGregor could be facing his first loss under the UFC banner.

However, as he so often does, he came out fighting in the second round and finished Mendes with a vicious series of strikes. With so many people thinking he'd come up short, it must've been unbelievably satisfying for Conor to walk out as the victor.

So next up - it's the match that began a petition for a trilogy.

#2 Nate Diaz

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Nate is a warrior

When Nate Diaz defeated Conor McGregor, many people were left wondering if the Irishman would ever be the same again.

Fast forward a few months, and we got our answer in emphatic fashion as McGregor went five rounds with one of the best in the world and came out on top. Ironically enough, though, it looked for a while like things wouldn't go his way once again.

After two rounds, Diaz appeared set to replicate his victory at UFC 196, but the determination in McGregor wouldn't allow for that to happen and instead we were all witnesses to an absolute war.

It was one of the best fights of the year and proved once and for all that people cannot count McGregor out under any circumstances.

We conclude with one of the most remarkable MMA victories of all time.

#1 Eddie Alvarez

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Alvarez vs McGregor was one-sided, to say the least

When Conor McGregor defeated Eddie Alvarez and became a two-weight World Champion in the process, it was one of the most impressive feats in the history of mixed martial arts.

However, that's only part of the story as the overall quality of Conor's performance on that night at UFC 205 will rightly go down as one of the greatest we've seen in many years.

It wasn't because it was a war or that he came from behind to win it, but instead it was about how calmly and quickly he took apart one of the best fighters in the world.

Many people felt that Alvarez would provide Conor with his toughest test yet, however, McGregor was able to pick his shots and defeat Eddie with such ease that it left everyone watching in shock.


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