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UFC dream fights vol.1: Conor McGregor v Jorge Masvidal

In the first in our series on UFC dream match-ups, we take a look at Conor McGregor and Jorge Masvidal.

By Peter Hanson
McGregor vs Masvidal

Las Vegas, March 23: Not many can rival Conor McGregor's talking game but in Jorge Masvidal the Irishman would go head-to-head with a worthy adversary.

McGregor has forged a lucrative career in MMA by backing up his skills on the microphone inside the ring, meaning 'The Notorious' will forever be known as a UFC legend.

Masvidal has been around the block and earned a legion of fans for his all-action style but it was not really until the last year that the 'Gamebred' really rose to prominence.

While McGregor is not the natural welterweight Masvidal is, there is certainly a clamour to see the two go to war.

In the first of a series of UFC dream fights we would love to see, we closely examine McGregor and Masvidal's records in the Octagon.

WHY DO WE WANT TO SEE THIS FIGHT?

It is not just their ability to whip up a frenzy with their trash talk that would make this such an intriguing fight. The bout would be somewhat of a risk for McGregor, who is more at home in the featherweight and lightweight divisions.

McGregor has fought just three times at the 170lb welterweight limit, but a potential showdown could be a real slugfest between two supreme strikers.

Many feel Masvidal – who also has good wrestling and grappling skills – may be too big for McGregor, but the latter has never backed down from a challenge and the bout would be a big-money draw.

GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS

McGregor will forever be known as one of the greats of UFC and needed just 13 seconds to knockout the fearsome Jose Aldo and win the featherweight title in 2015.

A year later, he outclassed Eddie Alvarez to snare the lightweight strap and become the first man in UFC history to hold belts in two weight divisions simultaneously.

Masvidal is a veteran of the game but it was a trio of outstanding victories in 2019 that really saw him rise to prominence, a second-round knockout of Darren Till followed by an astonishing five-second triumph over Ben Askren.

Towards the end of year, he defeated Nate Diaz – a man familiar to McGregor, the pair having fought twice in 2016 – to become the BMF champion.

WHAT'S THEIR MMA RECORD (W-L-D)?

McGregor: 22-4-0

Masvidal: 35-13-0

TALE OF THE TAPE

McGregor:

Age: 31

Height: 5' 9" (175 cm)

Weight: 155 lbs (70 kg)

Reach 74"

Leg Reach: 40"

Masvidal:

Age: 35

Height: 5' 11" (180 cm)

Weight: 170 lbs (77 kg)

Reach: 74"

Leg Reach: 39"

WHAT THEY'VE SAID ABOUT A POTENTIAL FIGHT

"Any one of these little mouthy fools can get it. All of them. Every single one. It does not matter," McGregor said after beating Donald Cerrone in January, a fight that Masvidal attended.

"It's a big money fight. It's a dude that's a two-time division champion. He has some impressive records, and he comes to fight man, so in that aspect, yes," Masvidal told the Ariel Helwani Show.

FIGHT STATS IN UFC

McGregor:

- McGregor has a 49 per cent significant strike success rate. Out of 1,110 such attempts, 543 have landed. 77 per cent of these strikes come from a standing position, with 13 per cent from the ground.

- The Irishman averages 5.43 significant strikes landed per minute and absorbs 4.4.

- In defence, McGregor has avoided 55 per cent of significant strikes, and seen off 70 per cent of takedown attempts.

- The majority of McGregor's attempts are to the head, with 383 (71 per cent) landed in that area, compared to 92 (17 per cent) and 68 (13 per cent) to the body and legs.

Masvidal:

- Masvidal has a slightly lower significant strike accuracy of 49 per cent. 967 of his 1,957 attempted strikes have landed.

- The Miami native is more aggressive than McGregor in his attempt to try takedowns, completing 15 of 31.

- Masvidal has impressive defensive abilities, protecting himself against 67 per cent of significant strikes and 78 takedown attempts.

- The stats show his targets for striking are a little more varied. 526 (62 per cent) of his strikes have landed on the head, with 204 (24 per cent) and 122 (14 per cent) to the body and legs.

Story first published: Monday, March 30, 2020, 8:44 [IST]
Other articles published on Mar 30, 2020