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#4. Conor McGregor doesn’t appear to be impressed with Kamaru Usman and believes he can beat him
Conor McGregor also discussed one dominant champion during his Q&A. The UFC has a number of candidates for 2021’s fighter of the year, but reigning UFC welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman is probably at the front of the queue.
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‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ has made three successful title defenses this year, knocking out Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal and defeating Colby Covington via decision. He’s also currently ranked as the UFC’s top pound-for-pound fighter. However, despite those accomplishments, it seems as though Conor McGregor is not all that impressed by Usman and his style in the octagon.
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When asked how he felt about a fight with the Nigerian, Conor McGregor stated that he felt that Covington “lumped him up” in their clash at UFC 268 and probably would’ve won the fight had Usman not decked him in the second round.
More to the point, the Irishman claimed he sees holes in Usman’s game, notably a “suspect dome." He then stated that he’d be confident in defeating him for the UFC welterweight title.
How much we can take from this is anyone’s guess, as after his two losses to Dustin Poirier, the idea of McGregor challenging for the UFC welterweight title seems like a pipe dream. However, Usman vs. McGregor would definitely be a massive drawing card for the UFC should they choose to pull it out.
Assuming the Irishman can win his next fight, stranger things have happened...
#3. Conor McGregor still wants to end his rivalry with Nate Diaz with a trilogy bout
While Conor McGregor’s fights with Dustin Poirier, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Eddie Alvarez were all historic in their own way, perhaps his most famous rivalry was against Nate Diaz in 2016.
‘The Notorious’ stepped up to 170 pounds for the first time ever at UFC 196 that year to take on Diaz, who took the fight on late notice following the withdrawal of Rafael dos Anjos. In a huge upset at the time, Diaz took the fight to McGregor and choked him out, becoming the first fighter to defeat the Irishman in the UFC.
Five months later, the rivals rematched at UFC 202, with ‘The Notorious’ taking a razor-close decision after an all-time classic war. The event itself set a new record for the UFC’s largest pay-per-view buyrate.
Ever since then, UFC fans have wondered whether they’ll ever get to see a trilogy bout between the two. Based on Conor McGregor’s recent Twitter Q&A, he’d definitely be down for it.
So will the UFC look to book this bout in 2022? It’s definitely possible. Diaz does have just one fight remaining on his current deal with the promotion, but he also looks past his best now, making him a beatable foe for McGregor.
Add in the fact that a fight between the two would undoubtedly draw plenty of money and it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see the UFC book it in order to fully introduce ‘The Notorious’ to the welterweight division in his comeback next year.
