Conor McGregor said it himself. “Whenever I fight it’s a celebration.” And the “Notorious” Irishman is on the money as most of the UFC’s biggest fights in the last five years have involved McGregor. Now he’s set to make his return in a hotly anticipated rematch against rising lightweight contender, Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier.
Though McGregor already dusted Poirier several years back, Poirier has evolved to become one of the division’s best and most exciting fighters. This will be a fantastic fight and one that will be heavily featured in online sports betting like on BetUS sportsbook.
Conor McGregor’s Biggest Fights
4: Setting a Record With Khabib Nurmagomedov
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- Event: UFC 229
- Date: Oct. 6, 2018
- Result: Loss – Round 4 Submission
When McGregor loses, he wins. McGregor took his “Notorious” moniker up a notch and was the wildest he’s been leading up to his mega-fight with the undefeated Russian grappler. UFC odds had McGregor as a sizable underdog as high as +250.
The fight went exactly how MMA pundits and non-McGregor diehards predicted: Nurmagomedov smothered McGregor with his high-pressure wrestling then made him tap with a vicious neck crank.
That wasn’t the end of it. After the fight, Nurmagomedov launched himself at McGregor’s camp while his Russian compatriots blindsided McGregor. It was an unprecedented brawl that led to UFC President Dana White condemning both camps.
When the dust cleared, the PPV sold a UFC-record 2.4 million buys breaking a record McGregor also helped set.
#3: First Simultaneous Two-Division Champion
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- Event: UFC 205
- Date: Nov. 12, 2016
- Result: Win – Round 2 TKO
While this achievement came with plenty of controversies, namely McGregor refusing to defend his featherweight title and fighting Nate Diaz at welterweight, it is an undeniable achievement. McGregor beat up then-champion Eddie Alvarez and took his belt just like that.
McGregor was decided favorite hovering around 2-1 when the fight started per UFC betting odds, but McGregor appeared like a bigger favorite the way he put on a master class in striking. He then became the first UFC fighter to hold two belts at once.
Following this fight, McGregor brought the great Floyd Mayweather Jr. out of retirement for one of the highest-profile boxing matches in this era. McGregor would lose as a massive underdog but still put on an entertaining fight worthy of its hype.
#2: Classics Against Nate Diaz
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- Events: UFC 196 and UFC 202
- Dates: March 5, 2016 and Aug. 20, 2016
- Results: Loss – Round 2 Submission and Win – Majority Decision
Every great fighter needs his foil. Muhammad Ali had Joe Frazier. Jon Jones had Daniel Cormier. Conor McGregor has Nate Diaz. Together, the two sold a combined 3.1 million PPVs. including a then-record 1.65 million for their second fight. And to think this only happened because McGregor’s original opponent, then-lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos pulled out due to an injury.
Diaz filled in on a few days’ notice and was a big underdog going as high as 4-1. Most fans including pundits thought McGregor would finish Diaz the way he finished all of his UFC opponents to this date. Instead, Diaz weathered McGregor’s initial onslaught and tapped him with a rear-naked choke to complete one of the UFC’s biggest upsets.
The two would run it back several months later and in another classic, McGregor beat Diaz by majority decision. Fans eagerly anticipate UFC news of a rubber match between these two.
#1: Winning the Championship in Record-Setting Fashion
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- Events: UFC 194
- Dates: Dec. 12, 2015
- Results: Win – Round 1 KO
McGregor was already the champion in his and his fans’ minds, but he needed to officially mint it and he did just that in one of the sport’s most lopsided rivalries. In the span of a year, McGregor psychologically broke down Jose Aldo then knocked him out in a UFC record 13 seconds.
Aldo was the undisputed featherweight king who defended his belt nine times in the span of six years. McGregor had come from scintillating knockouts of Dennis Siver and Poirier, but there was a consensus that his outlandish self-promotion had overshadowed his actual skills.
The fight was initially booked in July, but Aldo pulled out due to injury. McGregor then beat Chad Mendes to win the interim belt. But even before this fight, McGregor had already attacked Aldo with an onslaught of taunts that led Aldo to play into his hands.
The Conor McGregor era officially started and this event, which sold 1.2 million PPV buys, would be the first of many of McGregor’s multi-million fights.
