Don’t bank on this one coming to fruition but it is a good line.
With the furore surrounding UFC 200, and the absence of Jon Jones on the card, the admittedly stellar event has lost some of its star power.
Conor McGregor is in Las Vegas and, during a press conference with Nate Diaz to promote UFC 202, the Irishman has cheekily hinted at being open to jumping in the Octagon on two days’ notice.
McGregor’s response when asked whether he would throw his hat in the ring for #UFC200 on two days’ notice pic.twitter.com/5nnMqETvWp
— Darragh Murphy (@DarrMurphy) July 7, 2016
“I’m here and I’m in shape. All they’ve got to do is ask,” McGregor smiled as he glanced up at UFC president Dana White.
Of course there is no real possibility of McGregor vs. Diaz II being made on 48 hours’ notice and Diaz refused to even dignify the question with a response.
The press conference was dominated by questions about what both fighters had changed since their initial meeting at UFC 196, which Diaz won by rear naked choke.
“I’ve simply prepared a little bit more specific,” McGregor said. “Usually I don’t prepare for a specific opponent and the reasons are clear to everybody.
“Everyone I face pulls out. They pull out all the time. Last-minute pull-outs have been a staple in my career so I just carried on training and even though I was preparing for (Rafael) dos Anjos in the last contest, I didn’t even bring a southpaw into the camp.
“This time, I’m preparing for a tall, lanky, ugly, Mexican southpaw and that’s it. A lot more specific.
“I’m going to go in and put this man away.”
Diaz had a rather more succinct answer when he was asked if he had changed up his training for ‘The Notorious’ now that he is able to prepare with a full training camp.
He said: “Yeah, I’m training to fight him.”
