Matches to Make After UFC 202

It was by all accounts a classic. In a clear contender for “Fight of the Year,” Conor McGregor walked away from his UFC 202 rematch against Nate Diaz with a majority decision on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The SBG Ireland superstar was rewarded for his efforts by judges Jeff Mullen and Derek Cleary, both of whom struck 48-47 scorecards in his favor; Glenn Trowbridge ruled it a 47-47 draw. It was also closely contested from a statistical standpoint. According to FightMetric data, Diaz connected with two more significant strikes, 166-164, than McGregor across five rounds of intense battle. However, the Irishman landed at a higher rate, 57 percent to 48 percent, and recorded the only three knockdowns of the fight, two of them in the decisive second round. As was evident to most observers, McGregor invested heavily in leg kicks: He found the mark with 40 of them, 27 in the first two rounds alone. Diaz made his most significant advances in rounds three and five, his sublime work in the middle stanza briefly but dramatically turning the tide in his favor. While debate over the decision figures to continue for weeks, days and maybe months, McGregor nevertheless drew even with Diaz in their head-to-head rivalry, as he avenged his March 5 submission loss at UFC 196. Perhaps this was “The Empire Strikes Back” in their eventual trilogy. In wake of UFC 202 “Diaz vs. McGregor 2,” here are five matches that ought to be considered: Related » By the Numbers: UFC 202 Conor McGregor vs. Jose Aldo: McGregor can bask in the glory of another career-defining victory for a time, but he has tough decisions to make moving forward. The featherweight crown, undefended since he knocked out Aldo in 13 seconds on …

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