It really hasn't been. Aside from Khabib (who wrestle fecks everyone) when else has he struggled on the ground? And please don't say Diaz when he was rocked and retreated to the ground.
Did the hype around Gaethje convince you he is a multi-dimensional fighter, when that is clearly not the case?
When you move up from one weight class where you have been previously fighting to another, be it boxing or MMA, its called moving up a weight class. Conversely if you go down its said you are moving down or dropping down a weight class. Last week of the prep it was decided Conor would move up 2 weight classes instead of 1.
He maybe an all-american but Khabib is an all-Nurmagomedov wrestler.
There is no hype around Gaethje in contrast to the ridiculous amount of hyper McGregor generated over the past 5 years. Gaethje was known as a wrestler, DC was known as a wrestler, Chad Mendes was known as a wrestler, as are several others. None of them generate the levels of mindbendingly irrational hype as McGregor does, which is why he receives far more scrutiny on the topic.
As it stands Conor has lost against a stand in fighter which was avenged and against the greatest MMA fighter of all time. Plus he has not only won the rest of those fights but won them well.
Very good point there. Khabib is as you say just a good striker but in a way he is exceptional at certain aspects of striking because he has perfected guiding the fight towards his unparalleled strength on the ground.... in the sense that his striking defense and awareness is very good, he can pressure brilliantly, set up take downs brilliantly, and essentially control the Octagon reducing his chances of getting knocked out and increase his ability to take down. I am trying to make the same point with Conor that although only good at grappling, he excels at certain aspects which allows him to dictate the fight and guide towards that deadly left of his.
There has certainly been a lot of talk about the potential difficulties Gaethje might pose for Khabib due to his wrestling background.
I don't think he is (if I said it before, then that was a mistake). He still has all his work ahead of him in terms of showing his wrestling skills he had in college. Ferguson, on the other hand, has nothing to prove in this regard.
You said it less than six hours ago.
I was thinking of Ferguson at the time.
You can use technicalities but we all know he's a natural LW, especially as he's said it himself and he fought a guy whose also a natural LW. Saying he "jumped up two weight classes" is something people do to add sprinkle to his achievement. If you want to do that then fair enough.
Not really. The one good thing that will happen is that Gaethje will concentrate on his ground game now and hopefully become an even more rounded fighter. Other than that the only other thing to look forward to is perhaps Chandler.Anyone else excited for LW with Khabib retiring?
Nate was easily 15 pounds heavier on fight night. That's a big advantage.
Peak Jon Jones was something else. Tough to decide between him, Khabib, and GSP.
He was also smoking weed on a boat in Cabo when he got the call to fight Conor, so whatever extra weight he was carrying wasn't exactly fight hardened muscle.
Yeah but McGregor was in camp whilst Nate was getting stoned on a boat in Cabo. There's two sides to that coin.
I would have said Jones but the drug stuff and his performances since his last drug scandal takes shine away from his résumé.
Must have been good weed to make him forget how to fight.
There isnt really any reason to be better on the ground. Everybody mostly stands and bangs these days.
Not sure how much time he will invest in it given the current opposition in the division. He went into last night with a winning strategy that would've had a good chance of success against any other opponent other than Khabib, who just happened to be in GOAT mode last night. If Justin was fighting anyone else, the leg kicks would've been debilitating and eventually led to some punches to the head.
Isn't that a perfect reason to be better on the ground? Smash everyone on the ground.
If you don't want to talk about technicalities then leave the subject alone. He fought seven fights in a row at featherweight and was moving up to a weight he hadn't fought at for 4 years and his camp prep was geared towards 155 until a week out and then he hit the steak and carbs apparently. These things are normally meticulously planned so yes it has an impact.
I believe yesterday's very quick triangle proved the importance of having a rounded octagon game for Gaethje. Gaethje is a very proactive fighter who likes to implement his style on the opponent and make them adjust their style for him. When the lack of a decent ground game means that it effects his dominant stand up style due to a lack of belief in his own ability then he needs to work on it, if not for the added dimension then at least for his own mental strength.
Do you think he will regain lost Irish fans if he manages to start winning again and stops with the trash talk?
That’s such false revisionism. Everyone was talking up Gaethje’s ‘American wrestling’ prowess before the fight.
If you want to follow technicalities then don't go banging on about McGregor's power, which only looked Ngannou-like fighting people below his natural weight class. I'm not sure you did, but many do.
They were talking up that he is a top wrestler who never uses it and can he be the guy to stuff Khabib's take downs.
Unlikely. He will always have his core fanbase here, most of whom answer any criticism of him with "He makes more money than you!"
Yeah but thats Khabib. Look at the wrestlers, all of them have abandoned any idea of taking it to the ground.
I don't think he can help himself. Controversy will follow him everywhere and he has a mouth on him. It was all a bit WWE with him but punching that old guy because he didn't want some shite whiskey in the middle of the day was a fecking disgrace.
I didn't. We were talking weight classes.
My bad, must have been someone else.
I dont want to turn the thread into an ethno-political screed, but the truth is that Conors brash arrogance is the antithesis of the Irish personna of humbleness and self depreciation. He's frankly an embarrassment to the Irish people which he didn't need to be. In my opinion the Irish people are the most liked "european" people to the rest of the world. That's all because they suffered the same under colonialism as everyone else and the were treated like subhuman trash like everyone else. Comor could've ridden that Irish popularity into the sunset but instead he decided to be a xenophobic twat.
I don’t see him as capable of the kind of turnaround required, he is who he is.
That was initially part of the attraction of McGregor for us. We’re looked upon as a humble little nation who sometimes punch above our weight but are ultimately plucky losers. This is the image that drives Roy Keane to despair. In the aftermath of a pretty devastating economic collapse, it was in some ways quite refreshing to see a brash Dub telling the world to suck his big Irish balls and then going out and knocking people out.
Does Conar know that his public perception is so bi-polar, and that many of his countrymen despise him as a cnut? And that its because of his many illegal crimes and misdemeanours? Does he even care?
That was part of the initial attraction with McGregor too though and why he initially built up a cult-like following.
