UFC 246

[johnmangala]

[allBthere]

Re: UFC 246

most anticipated fight for me since GSP/Bisping

Cowboy might be my fav of all time along with Georges, he has the best highlight reel of all time imo. He's been in wars, annihilated people, head kick Ko's, subs, he's a genuine hard-a$$.

Obviously I hope he beats the breaks of McGregor, but like always, the key to beating cowboy is pressuring him right after the 1st bell and not relenting and trying to take him out quick. Connor's straight left will land, so Donald has to weather that and establish his distance. I think if Donald can land a few shots and cut Connor early that would setup for an epic war.

100% order for me.

[Smartguides]

Re: UFC 246

Mcgregor is done, you can be a fighter with that much money, fame and with that type of character. I believe Cowboy has an excellent chance to beat him and close his care with beautiful W., But bookmakers still will be giving a good chance for mcgragers, just because he is mcgregor So bet on Cowbow all of your money lol, and bet it here, please https://smartbettingguide.com/best-mma-betting-sites/

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

I don't like how they've started constructing the "casuals" PPV cards (Conor, Khabib, Diaz).
It's like a boxing card.
I love Pettis, but the rest is pretty weak.

Main card (PPV)
Conor McGregor vs. Donald Cerrone
Holly Holm vs. Raquel Pennington
Aleksei Oleinik vs. Maurice Greene
Cláudia Gadelha vs. Alexa Grasso
Anthony Pettis vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira
Preliminary card (ESPN2)
Roxanne Modafferi vs. Maycee Barber
Andre Fili vs. Sodiq Yusuff
Drew Dober vs. Nasrat Haqparast
Chas Skelly vs. Grant Dawson
Early Preliminary card (UFC Fight Pass)
Sabina Mazo vs. JJ Aldrich
Tim Elliott vs. Askar Askarov
Brian Kelleher vs. Ode Osbourne
Aleksa Camur vs. Justin Ledet

[Pappy Knuckles]

Re: UFC 246

I think McGregor will beat Cowboy decisively. Via KO/TKO, more than likely.

I know that Conor isn't what he used to be (on many levels), but I have little doubt that he'll be on point for this one. I believe Cowboy's downfall will be him trying to strike with McGregor, which is a bad idea. Donald isn't a slouch on the feet by any stretch of the imagination, but Conor is better. He's slicker and more accurate. Plus, as we've discussed before, Cowboy is known to fall short in big fights. I just see it as a recipe for a loss.

If Cowboy does win, it'll probably because he got dropped and then caught Conor in some sort of submission. I like Cerrone a lot and I wish that I had more faith in him, but I don't.

[allBthere]

Re: UFC 246

I think McGregor will beat Cowboy decisively. Via KO/TKO, more than likely.

I know that Conor isn't what he used to be (on many levels), but I have little doubt that he'll be on point for this one. I believe Cowboy's downfall will be him trying to strike with McGregor, which is a bad idea. Donald isn't a slouch on the feet by any stretch of the imagination, but Conor is better. He's slicker and more accurate. Plus, as we've discussed before, Cowboy is known to fall short in big fights. I just see it as a recipe for a loss.

If Cowboy does win, it'll probably because he got dropped and then caught Conor in some sort of submission. I like Cerrone a lot and I wish that I had more faith in him, but I don't.

if cowboy keeps him away a little bit or takes it to the ground, rd 2 and 3 will be very interesting. I don't think connor can get him out of there after the 1st once Cerrone starts 'clicking' The reach is a thing in this one too imo. Cerrone is also very good at punishing people lol, like if he finds that something is working he's take full advantage.

I tend to agree with you though when looking at only the 1st round.

[Pappy Knuckles]

Re: UFC 246

if cowboy keeps him away a little bit or takes it to the ground, rd 2 and 3 will be very interesting. I don't think connor can get him out of there after the 1st once Cerrone starts 'clicking' The reach is a thing in this one too imo. Cerrone is also very good at punishing people lol, like if he finds that something is working he's take full advantage.

I tend to agree with you though when looking at only the 1st round.

For me, the thing about Cerrone 'clicking' late is that he only does that against B-level fighters and opponents whose striking isn't on par with his. His win over Iaquinta was nice, but I'd put him in that category too, albeit a strong B. Before then, the last "good" win that Cerrone had was probably Benson and that feels like forever ago.

I really hope that he surprises me and tries to get Conor to the ground, as you suggested. If he goes that route I like his chances much more.

I just get the feeling that Cowboy will want to dance with Conor. I'm fully expecting to see him giving us one of those "Aw shucks" and a half-smile at the end of the fight after Conor pieces him up. But who knows, maybe Conor will look terrible. I'm interested to see how it plays out either way. The rest of the card sure isn't doing it for me.

[allBthere]

Re: UFC 246

For me, the thing about Cerrone 'clicking' late is that he only does that against B-level fighters and opponents whose striking isn't on par with his. His win over Iaquinta was nice, but I'd put him in that category too, albeit a strong B. Before then, the last "good" win that Cerrone had was probably Benson and that feels like forever ago.

I really hope that he surprises me and tries to get Conor to the ground, as you suggested. If he goes that route I like his chances much more.

I just get the feeling that Cowboy will want to dance with Conor. I'm fully expecting to see him giving us one of those "Aw shucks" and a half-smile at the end of the fight after Conor pieces him up. But who knows, maybe Conor will look terrible. I'm interested to see how it plays out either way. The rest of the card sure isn't doing it for me.

2 things.

1) I just noticed it's a 5 rounder! so if Donald wants to win, he should take him down for rounds 1 and 2 and drain Connor. Like you though I just don't think he will because of his personality - he doesn't want to win at all costs, he always wants to win his way and that is preferably to stand and bang. If he diminished a bloated, rusty Connor for 2-3 rounds he could win EASILY imo.

2) the betting odds which I rarely look at are HEAVILY favouring Connor. Everyone is expecting a 1st round KO/TKO for Connor and I can honestly see that too if Cowboy just rolls in like usual.

ex-factors for something different.
- if this is Cowboy's swan song, he will maybe want to win 'no matter what'
- if he wants to fight another 'superstar' he may also want to win 'no matter what'
-is cowboy capable of putting the ego or manliness aside to make that conscious decision or will he just try to win the Cerrone way?

That's what is making this fight more and more interesting to me - Donald is clearly the more versatile and talented all-around fighter - and 'we are all' assuming he will lose because of his strategy.

My own bias lets me imagine Cowboy can win his way though, just because Connor isn't as pressure as other pressure fighters in that he doesn't go with volume, his presure is position/footwork based. Very effective, but Donald is hard to counter because he stays upright and doesn't lunge in as much as other fighters. I don't think Donald will face a barage of shots just sort of coming at him uninvited.

Super hyped for this!

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

Cowboy is definitely a live dog.

Here are the betting odds as of 4 January
Conor McGregor -323 (1.31)
Donald Cerrone +245 (3.45)

[p_rushing]

Re: UFC 246

If Cowboy has a smart gameplan, he wins easily. Take him down and submit him. I need to see Conor actually in great shape and ready for a fight before I can trust him to beat anyone.

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

I'm racking my brain. this is a far closer fight than what the odds are saying. Cowboy is a slow starter, sure. But he has been far more active. He does do bad against southpaws, sure, but he beat Al Iaquinta and Alex Hernandez.

I want to say Cowboy wins by 3rd round finish. But I'm not sure if he can take a punch like Diaz did. I can see this playing out similarly in where the bigger, more ringwarm Cowboy keeps a rusty Conor off for a few rounds until he tires trying to finish a welterweight.

But tomorrow I might change my mind.

[Money99]

Re: UFC 246

most anticipated fight for me since GSP/Bisping

Cowboy might be my fav of all time along with Georges, he has the best highlight reel of all time imo. He's been in wars, annihilated people, head kick Ko's, subs, he's a genuine hard-a$$.

Obviously I hope he beats the breaks of McGregor, but like always, the key to beating cowboy is pressuring him right after the 1st bell and not relenting and trying to take him out quick. Connor's straight left will land, so Donald has to weather that and establish his distance. I think if Donald can land a few shots and cut Connor early that would setup for an epic war.

100% order for me.

Agreed.
I may be way off here, but I think Conor's power is very overrated above 145. Maybe even at 155. At 170, he won't have nearly as much pop and I see Cowboy surviving that early onslaught.
In fact, I think Cowboy is going to trap him into blowing his wad in the first 1 or 2 minutes.
And as we know, Conor has zero stamina. It'll be even more apparent at 170 as he looks like he's put on a lot of muscle - which requires a lot of oxygen to feed.

He's extremely rich and I think the only reason McGregor continues to fight is he's desperate to stay relevant in the mainstream.
Remember when everyone hung off every quote or Tweet he produced? Yeah, not so much anymore. And I think that's killing him.

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

Anyone rewatched Pettis - Cowboy?
A very interesting fight in the light of this one.
A smaller Pettis wins by awkward southpaw stance and throwing body kicks.
Conor working the body might be a key to success.

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

Haha! Cowboy walking you through a walk-out made my night 🤣

[MacGowan]

Re: UFC 246

Camur's fight IQ is questionable.