UFC 196 Picks and Predictions 3/5/16 – Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz

UFC 196 Picks and Predictions 3/5/16 – Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz UFC 196 Picks and Predictions 3/5/16 – Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz

Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz Pick

Two of the biggest trash-talkers in the UFC finally meet up when Conor McGregor faces Nate Diaz in the main event of UFC 196 tonight.

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According to the oddsmakers at BetDSI, McGregor is listed as the favorite in this 170-pound non-title bout, as he has a money line of -400 to win, while Diaz has been given odds of +300 to prevail. These two meet in the main event of UFC 196, which takes place tonight from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and airs live on PPV.

McGregor (19-2) is actually the 145-pound champion and he was schedule to take on Rafael Dos Anjos for the 155-pound in this fight, but RDA pulled out a week ago with a broken foot and the UFC inserted Diaz. The two will fight at 170 pounds due to the limited time for Diaz to attempt to cut down to 155 pounds. McGregor is the hot draw in the UFC right now as he is coming off a 13-second KO win over Jose Aldo at UFC 194 in December. He can essentially pick any fight he wants due to his drawing power. He talks a lot of talk, but has more than backed it up thus far. Diaz (18-10) is also a big talker and a tough fighter, but hasn’t had the same top-line success that McGregor has. He is coming off a decision win over Michael Johnson back in December, but is just 2-3 in his last five fights.

Diaz is a tough out for any opponent. Though he had 10 losses in his career, only one has been by KO. Diaz has a very long reach that will compete with McGregor’s. That has been one of Conor’s strengths that he may not have in this fight. Diaz also is very slick on the ground with his jiu-jitsu, but doesn’t tend to look for takedowns. He tends to like to bully opponents with his long jab. McGregor will probably welcome that approach from Diaz, as he believes his precision and speed will eventually KO anyone. McGregor has had a full training camp for this fight as he prepared for Dos Anjos, while Diaz just took this fight a week ago. That likely will play a key role. While I am not certain McGregor gets the KO of Diaz, he should be able to win a striking battle for 25 minutes if he is as good as he claims to be.

UFC 196 FREE PICK: CONOR McGREGOR -400

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