The search for a replacement fighter for Conor McGregor on March 5 is on, with half the fighters in the UFC vying to face the brash featherweight turned lightweight. This whole thing kicked off early in the morning when Rafael Dos Anjos was forced to pull out of his fight with the Irishman at UFC 196 due to a broken foot. Since then the Twitters have been a flurry of activity.
I have a real hard time turning down a good time. Opportunity knocks…my door is open 👊🏽 @ufc… https://t.co/KXjNm0qqwA
— Urijah Faber (@UrijahFaber) February 23, 2016
Cerrone retained the services of @TheDolceDiet as of last night, Dolce confirmed with me minutes ago. Doing his part to get ready if need be
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) February 23, 2016
https://twitter.com/dukeroufus/status/702154080924241920
Coach: Jose Aldo not in shape, turned down offer to replace Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 196 https://t.co/9saQBb7Abt
— Guilherme Cruz (@guicruzzz) February 23, 2016
Meanwhile, Nate Diaz is all like…
He's going to have to get on his knees and beg…
— Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) February 23, 2016
Things are developing minute-by-minute on this one, but as it stands the frontrunners to face off against McGregor in two weeks are Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone and Nate Diaz. But Diaz wasn’t joking about making someone beg.
According to a source close to Nate, the UFC hasn’t offered him anywhere near enough money to make the cut to 155 and the company isn’t particularly interested in a 165-pound catchweight. Which is understandable considering McGregor is coming up from 145 pounds for the first time.
With Cerrone already committing to working with weight cut mad scientist Mike Dolce to make 155, there’s a good chance he’ll win the McGregor sweepstakes and get to fight the Irishman on March 5. That’s if Conor agrees.
The Notorious One has been completely silent as this mad scramble for a new opponent goes on. Who would he rather face? Is he willing to fight above 155 pounds? As McGregor said, he’s in the “do whatever the f*ck I want business” now, and any potential opponent has to be okayed by him. He’s shown he’s game to stay in the fight, but that doesn’t mean he’ll face anyone the UFC suggests.
More to come as it happens.
