What's Next for Conor McGregor? 4 Potential Matchups

 

What's Next for Conor McGregor?

When Conor McGregor wins, so does MMA. McGregor's ability to draw a large audience exceeds any other fighter in the history of the sport. When Conor fights, the eyes of many casual observers are drawn in to take a glance at the sport. When he wins, this glance becomes a gaze, and everybody involved is better for it. Conor's success is the proverbial rising tide that lifts all boats. Well, one would have to have an interesting standard of success to see McGregor's performance last night as a successful one. So what does Dana White's cash cow getting slaughtered by a supercharged Dustin Poirier before making it out to pasture mean for the sport? 

Not The End of The World

While Conor McGregor is by far the biggest draw in the history of the sport, his losing last night isn't going to make it go extinct. The sport itself is amazing and will continue to be with or without him. Martial arts are all a means of physically expressing one's philosophical approach to solving an ever-evolving set of problems. MMA is the least restrictive form of martial arts expression, and the product will likely continue to sell itself well enough to stay prominent for some time. As for McGregor himself, this could just be a bad moment in his career that he rebounds from. There are lots of interesting fights left to be made for one of the UFC's most talented fighters and no shortage of willing opponents.

Nate Diaz Trilogy Fight 

A Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz bout would make sense at this point. The pair have had unfinished business for years now as they have fought twice, and each won one bout. Both fighters are coming off of being stopped in their last fights, so the trilogy fight makes more sense now than ever. Conor was set to face Rafael Dos Anjos for the lightweight strap at UFC 196 but would meet Nate Diaz that night instead and submit to a rear strangle. The pair would meet again at UFC 202. After going the full five rounds, McGregor would emerge victoriously. The classic rivalry definitely warrants a rubber match, and now would not be a bad time for it.

Dan Hooker

The main and co-main events of UFC 257 seemed to be a sort of lightweight tournament semi-final before Dustin Poirier expressed his complete aversion to the idea of fighting Michael Chandler after the conclusion of the event. Conor and Hooker both lost their respective bouts by knockout and are an undeniably exciting matchup on paper. Dan Hooker is a talented striker who doesn't know how to have a boring fight. A fight with McGregor would likely be some mix of an interesting stand-up chess match and a knockdown drag-out brawl. Conor would have a lot of height and reach to overcome in this one, which would present an interesting challenge. It would be interesting to see what tactical answers Mystic Mac would have for Hooker's reach and clinch game. On paper, this seems like a potential fight of the night matchup. I have a hard time believing this one would be boring.

Rafael Dos Anjos

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos was once on a collision course with Conor McGregor until he broke his foot just days before their scheduled bout. Conor would go on to fight Diaz that night and his and RDA's Paths would never cross. Now there is a chance for this bout to finally take place years later. RDA has repeatedly expressed his disappointment about the bout falling through and desire to fight McGregor. Dos Anjos is currently the #7 ranked welterweight and is coming off a victory over Paul Felder. He is an exciting fighter who aggressively pursues his opponents and throws a high volume of hard strikes. This is a challenging matchup for either fighter. Dos Anjos presents problems for Conor because he is a southpaw with big power, heavy low kicks, and strong grappling. Conor presents problems for RDA because of his footwork, ability to control distance, and accurate punches. 

Justin Gaethje 

This one would be cool to watch as it features two of the division's hardest hitters and most technical strikers. Justin Gaethje is coming off a submission loss to the bogeyman of the lightweight division, Khabib Nurmagomedov. A fight with Conor would be an interesting one. Gaethje would face a big challenge in stopping Conor McGregor from taking the dominant lead foot position in this bout. This is because Gaethje has a very upright stance that limits his ability to control the distance. Conor's stance is the opposite and enables him to move very quickly in this manner. In open stance matchups, Conor likes to step his lead foot outside of his opponents to clear a path for his straight left hand and is very good at attaining this position. Gaethje possesses powerful low kicks and it would be interesting to see if he could set them up effectively as Conor's wide stance makes it hard to check low kicks. If Gaethje were to win this hypothetical matchup throwing the right hand would have to be virtually forbidden because McGregor is too good at countering it.

Takeaway

The biggest draw of spectators in the sport of mixed martial arts was knocked unconscious by a man he once stopped in less than two minutes. His loss will undoubtedly lose the sport some viewership in the coming months, but it's not the end of the world for the sport of MMA or McGregor himself. The amazing spectacle that is the sport of MMA will continue to be successful, whether Conor McGregor does the same or not. Conor himself is still one of the most talented and exciting fighters the sport has ever seen, and many interesting fights lie ahead of him. The stage is now set for what could potentially be the most compelling comeback story in the history of the young sport of MMA, and the figurative ball is in the court of the sport's biggest star.

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