What's next for Conor McGregor?

How can Conor McGregor top his spectacular achievement at UFC 194, when he ended Jose Aldo's decade of dominance in just 13 seconds?

How about holding two UFC championship belts at once? For the brash, outspoken, and talented Irishman, the goal of holding two titles at the same time is very much in the cards.

McGregor on Saturday crushed Aldo with a perfectly placed left hand punch that sent the Brazilian icon falling to the canvas. He followed it up with a couple of hammer fists, and the referee quickly stopped the fight, ending Aldo's long reign as featherweight champion.


In the post-fight press conference, it was revealed that UFC president Dana White "saw two potential paths" for McGregor, as reported by MMA Fighting. "The Notorious" can either vacate his featherweight belt and move up to lightweight, where he can immediately challenge for the title, or defend his belt against Frankie Edgar.

"I think that was always his plan," White said, as quoted by MMA Fighting in a separate report. "He wanted to fight Jose Aldo, and then move to 55 (lightweight) and then fight for that title."

McGregor is open to both scenarios but said he has no intention of vacating his featherweight belt.


"I'll tell you one thing that won't be happening. If I go up to that lightweight division, there's no way in hell that I'm vacating my belt," he declared. "That's not happening."

"There will be a belt on one shoulder and a belt on the other," he said.

In the history of the UFC, only two fighters have held belts in multiple weight divisions – Randy Couture and BJ Penn. Neither fighter held the championships concurrently, however, and that is the goal that McGregor hopes to reach.

"Look how many fights I've had in the last year. I stay busy. I stay fresh. So when I go to lightweight and take that lightweight belt, I will stay the featherweight champion also," he said.

"I will be a dual weight champion. There is no going up and vacating. The belt will still be active, because I am active," he said.

White has yet to comment on McGregor's plans.

The lightweight belt is currently held by Rafael Dos Anjos, who is set to make a title defense next week against Donald Cerrone.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Rockhold dethrones Weidman to claim UFC middleweight belt

Luke Rockhold handed Chris Weidman the first loss of his UFC career and claimed the middleweight championship with a superb performance in the co-main event of UFC 194 Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Rockhold took advantage of a poor tactical decision made by Weidman late in the third round to take control of the fight completely, en route to a fourth-round technical knockout victory.

Weidman, who came into the fight with a 13-0 record that included two victories over Brazilian legend Anderson Silva, attempted an ill-advised wheel kick with around a minute to go in the third round. He missed badly, and Rockhold promptly took him to the mat.

From that point on, the bout was all Rockhold as the challenger pounded away at Weidman, whose face was thoroughly cut up and barely survived the third round.

The end came at the 3:12 mark of the fourth, when referee Herb Dean finally stopped the contest as Weidman was no longer throwing any punches, while Rockhold continued to do damage from top position.


"It's indescribable," Rockhold said after his win. "Are you kidding me? I can't even believe this is real."

Rockhold, a former Strikeforce middleweight champion, improved to 15-2 with his victory. Weidman dropped to 13-1.

The bout was close up until Weidman attempted his wheel kick, although Rockhold took control in the second round thanks to his tremendous kicks. Weidman, however, had seemingly recovered in the third, attacking Rockhold with kicks of his own before his poor attempt that changed the complexion of the fight.

"I remember throwing that," a disappointed Weidman said after the fight. "He caught me and brought me down. That wasn't the smartest move."

"He shouldn't be trying that kind of stuff on me," Rockhold said of the kick. "I knew that if I got top control and got on the ground, I'm operating on a different level than anybody right now. I'm comfortable in my own game."

The 31-year-old Weidman won the UFC middleweight belt in July 2013, beating Silva via knockout at UFC 162. He successfully defended the belt three times, the last at UFC 187 in May when he stopped Vitor Belfort.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

McGregor knocks out Aldo to become undisputed champ

Conor McGregor needed only 13 seconds to knock out Brazilian legend Jose Aldo in their highly anticipated UFC 194 main event and become the undisputed UFC featherweight champion of the world.

McGregor landed a brutal left hand that landed flush on Aldo's jaw, sending the Brazilian crashing face-first into the canvas.

Remarkably, Aldo landed a left punch of his own as he was falling down, but McGregor barely looked affected and was quick to respond when he saw his opponent on the mat, landing hammer fists on a supine Aldo.

The referee moved immediately to put a stop to the contest, and McGregor leapt to the top of the Octagon in celebration, soaking the love of the Irish fans that filled up at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night (Sunday in Manila).

"Again, nobody can take that left hand shot," said McGregor, who became the interim champion after beating Chad Mendes in July at UFC 189. "I tell you, he's powerful and he's fast, but precision beats power, and timing beats speed, and that's what you saw out there."


It was Aldo's first loss in the UFC and only the second of his career; his last defeat was in November 2005. Prior to the setback, Aldo had been the only featherweight champion in UFC history, successfully defending the belt seven times.

He was knocked out cold by a punch that he did not see coming, however. It was the fastest title fight in the history of the UFC, and the first time in his career that Aldo had been knocked out.

"I feel for Jose, he was a phenomenal champion and he deserved to go a little bit longer," said McGregor, who has won 15 consecutive fights. "But I still feel, at the end of the day, that precision beats power and timing beats speed all the day of the week."

"It would have happened sooner or later," said the brash Irishman.

Aldo, bleeding from a cut on the bridge of his nose, said afterwards that he wants a rematch.

"He threw a cross at my chest, which was unexpected, then I threw a punch and he came back with another cross and that was that," Aldo said through a translator.

"I think that we need a rematch. That was really not a fight, so we need to get back in here," he said.

Aldo and McGregor were initially set to face off at UFC 189, but the Brazilian pulled out with just a few weeks to go due to an injury suffered in training camp. Mendes took his place and was knocked out by McGregor, setting up the title unification bout.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Conor McGregor: 'I see him crumbling towards the end of the first'

Fight week festivities have officially commenced in Las Vegas, ahead of this weekend’s UFC 194 event.

Repeatedly touted as the year’s biggest fight, the night will be headlined by champion José Aldo, who is dead set on keeping his title. The undisputed featherweight king will be facing the self-proclaimed "truth-talking" interim champion Conor McGregor.

The long-overdue grudge match is set to take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in the sin city of Las Vegas, Nevada.

An odd sense of calmness was in the air during the pre-fight press conference on Wednesday afternoon (Thursday morning in Manila). No provoking antics were pulled, no word of trash talk was uttered. McGregor, however, did exude a quiet air of confidence this time around, a “state of zen” as he described it.

And like in previous media obligations, “The Notorious” displayed the same candor when asked about his personal prediction.

“I feel, within four minutes, the shots would have landed,” McGregor said. “It’s on him after that. I feel anything after that four-minute mark of the first round will be a formality. It will be on him, where he is mentally, where he is physically, and how much he truly wants this.”

“I see him crumbling towards the end of the first. Or not answering the bell for the second. But it will be wrapped up inside one,” he adds.

Aldo and McGregor were originally slated to face each other last July at UFC 189, but a rib injury on the Brazilian champion forced him out of the contest. Now that everything seems to be going smoothly within a mere three days before fight night, the brash Irishman is confident that a new featherweight reign will take over after December 12.

“This one will be a spectacle. This one will be a master class,” McGregor said. “This one will be the changing of the guard. Me bringing in a new era, in fighting, in approach, in everything.”

“I am a man with something to prove. And a man with something to prove is a dangerous individual. But at the same time, I am calm. I will go in calm, dangerous, and look to show the world the new age.”

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com