How do you see Conor v. the rest of the division right now? I can imagine his game having a bit of a renaissance - he really seemed behind the times for this fight, even if his top skills were still on fully display. But, right now, I think he might have a rough time staying in the top 5.
-Khabib rematch: Khabib smashes.
-Nate rematch: I pick Conor. He won the last fight; Nate is not active; and I think that Conor benefits from Nate having to make weight.
-Tony: Conor wins via KO.
-Justin: Second easiest fight to call besides Khabib. Justin finishes the fight via leg kicks.
-Hooker: Very hard, especially if Hooker gets chinny after this KO. If Hooker is as durable as he was against Dustin, I think Hooker wins in the 4th or 5th.
-Do Bronx: I pick Conor to win. I think he picks Charles apart and gets a KO.
-Chandler: Tough one to call. If I had to pick, I’d pick Chandler. But, it’s not an easy one.
-Dustin rematch: Conor did some good things in their fight and he could make adjustments. But, I’m picking Dustin until Conor shows adjustments.
Nate - true Nate’s inactivity might hurt but stylistically, a healthy Nate i think outlasts Connor and puts it on him more like fight 1. It will prob go the same way, Connor hurts/drops him early but Nate comes back…could be close though but it will test Connor again
Tony - Connor is too sharp unless Tony mixes in tds and wrestling
Justin - the one thing that has me guessing is Justin is ortho and Connor eats ortho fighters up…except Khabib who isn’t a primary striker
Hooker - interesting as he is taller than Connor and fights rangy which is usu Connor’s strength
Charles Olives - Charles’ tds are much improved, not only did he get Tony down, he got KLee down although Lee reversed after they got down, the fact that he even got Lee down was impressive…also the kind of abandon Olives can go at Connor cause he wants to be on the ground might give Connor problems (see Lee fight)
Chandler - again like Justin, orthos usu are tailor made for Connor but Chandler is the most dynamic in the div and the wrestling is another factor
Dustin - wouldn’t count Connor out, Dustin said he was hurt at some point but Connor still has to answer the calf kicks and durability issues
Nate - true Nate’s inactivity might hurt but stylistically, a healthy Nate i think outlasts Connor and puts it on him more like fight 1. It will prob go the same way, Connor hurts/drops him early but Nate comes back…could be close though but it will test Connor again
Tony - Connor is too sharp unless Tony mixes in tds and wrestling
Justin - the one thing that has me guessing is Justin is ortho and Connor eats ortho fighters up…except Khabib who isn’t a primary striker
Hooker - interesting as he is taller than Connor and fights rangy which is usu Connor’s strength
Charles Olives - Charles’ tds are much improved, not only did he get Tony down, he got KLee down although Lee reversed after they got down, the fact that he even got Lee down was impressive…also the kind of abandon Olives can go at Connor cause he wants to be on the ground might give Connor problems (see Lee fight)
Chandler - again like Justin, orthos usu are tailor made for Connor but Chandler is the most dynamic in the div and the wrestling is another factor
Dustin - wouldn’t count Connor out, Dustin said he was hurt at some point but Connor still has to answer the calf kicks and durability issues
I don’t remember Do Bronx taking Lee down. When did he do it?
Honestly, it’s hard for me to know what to take from the Tony/Do Bronx fight. I don’t know how much of Tony was left in that fight. iirc, the takedowns came after he got Tony to the cage. I’m not sure that he would be that against Conor.
Good point about the Orthodox stances. I think that Chandler would likely spend a LOT of time with straights to the body before opening up. Chandler looks to be quicker than anyone Conor has fought since Mendes. Chandler also has a stronger mind than Mendes, IMO.
Justin’s kicks are just too fast for Conor. And I know that he has pulled it off versus southpaws before. I can’t remember which fights. He did it somewhere on his post Porrier run.
I’m honestly not sure about this. Thinking about Max’s chin - how he hasn’t been knocked down after being caught clean by guys like Aldo, Conor, and Dustin - and his new weapons, I think Max would have a legit shot and I’d love to see it.
Max would have a good chance. Still has the chin although he doesn’t have the power at LW, he has the cardio and movement and diverse array of attack. He would need to grow into the LW frame though as we discussed before…