Conor McGregor vs Donald Cerrone Fight UFC 246
The former UFC two-division champion Conor McGregor made his long-awaited return to the UFC octagon at UFC 246. Against perennial top lightweight, now welterweight Donald Cerrone. Now, whether you are a fan of the Notorious One or not. There can be little if any denying the impact he has had on the sport of mixed martial arts. Ever since he burst on to the International scene back in 2013, McGregor has gone on to break records and redefine the sport as we know it.
On January 18th 2020, after well over a year, away from competition, McGregor made his triumphant return to to the octagon. Having lost in his title challenge to the lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov back in October 2018. Conor took a hiatus to lick his wounds, regroup and come back with a vengeance, all be it not at lightweight?
Now the former two-division champion who has competed at the welterweight limit against Nate Diaz, once again returned to compete at 170 lbs. Deciding to forego the lightweight division where he once ruled. And again try his hand at welterweight, against one of the most decorated fighters in the sport, Donald Cowboy Cerrone.
Not an obvious return fight for a fighter who held two UFC titles simultaneously. But the former champion already has some history with Cerrone. And what better way to announce is return than a fight many fans for some time had been calling for?
McGregor vs Cerrone Let’s Go!
In typical Conor McGregor fashion, the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was illuminated to the green white and gold colours of Ireland. As he made the entrance to his now trademark Sinead O’Connor Foggy dew remix. And whether there to support Cowboy or Conor, the fans in attendance were on their feet to once again witness the return of a fighter who has reshaped a sport.
Now carrying an additional twenty pounds of lean muscle. It has to be said McGregor’s body looked far more well-toned at the higher weight class than when he faced Diaz. When he looked more like a guy who had just piled on the pounds. But looks can be deceiving and Conor’s gas tank has been found wanting at this weight as his frame struggles to feed oxygen to its new body mass.
Now Conor has fought at featherweight and lightweight, while Cerrone has competed at lightweight and now welterweight. So no matter how you square it, that while both men came in as welterweights. Conor was physically the smaller man, with the smaller frame. Standing five feet nine inches, with Donald topping out at six feet. But as writer Mark Twain once said;
“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.“
Mark Twain
Round One Begins
And that was exactly how McGregor started the fight, coming out like a ravenous dog unleashed. He shot across the cage missing Cerrone with a huge left hand, as the pair quickly clinched. From here Conor began throwing shoulder shrugs which caught Cerrone multiple times clean on his face and nose. And from what we can see, it breaking the nose in the process.
When the pair separates, Donald is now bleeding badly from the nose. And backing up he tries to land a head kick on Conor which is deflected away. Conor answers with his own head kick which rocks Cowboy sending him backwards. A follow-up knee and a flurry of ground and pound and the fight is done.
Conor McGregor makes a victorious return to mixed martial arts with a stunning forty-second stoppage of Donald Cowboy Cerrone. And with other more well-established welterweights in attendance watching and waiting. What next for the biggest star in the sport? And who will be the one to step in and possibly earn their very own red panty night against the superstar? We wait, we watch, we plot.
Image courtesy of forbes.com