For the second time in seven months, a champion has pulled out a fight against Conor McGregor (19-2). The main event is now in jeopardy with reports coming out that Rafael Dos Anjos (25-7) is out of UFC 196 with a broken foot. McGregor is now left without an opponent.
Many have speculated Donald Cerrone as a potential replacement. “Cowboy” is coming off of a 1st round submission victory on Sunday in a Welterweight bout against Alex Oliveira. Cerrone’s camp JacksonWink MMA has even went onto Twitter to push for the fight.
However, a better and stylistically entertaining fight to make for the Irishman is Nate Diaz(18-10). Diaz is coming off of an impressive unanimous decision win over Michael Johnson (16-10). He showed his crisp boxing in that fight by cutting angles and consistently landing combinations. The Stockton native landed 153 strikes against Johnson.
McGregor vs. Diaz could be a standup war where we see a kickboxer vs. boxer type of matchup. Also, for the first time ever in the UFC, “The Notorious” would be facing someone with a longer reach than him. Diaz has a 76 inch reach compared to McGregor’s 74 inch reach. That alone would make the bout intriguing.
Although Diaz has stayed quiet, some have went onto Twitter to campaign for the fight to happen.
With dos Anjos out, the only guys I could see taking that fight on 11 days notice are Nate Diaz or Cerrone.
Probably have to be at 170 too.— Cathal Pendred (@Pendred) February 23, 2016
Think so, too. https://t.co/qIud0GAVmM
— Jon Anik (@Jon_Anik) February 23, 2016
@NateDiaz209 should get the @TheNotoriousMMA fight.
— kajan johnson (@IamRagin) February 23, 2016
Stay tuned to mmanews.com to hear more developments throughout the day!
