UFC betting online: Two-time featherweight title challenger Chad Mendes (17-2, 7 KOs, 2 SUBs) will replace injured champion Jose Aldo to face Conor McGregor (17-2, 15 KOs, 1 SUB) for the interim championship.
It’s unfortunate for fight fans and especially the UFC, who pumped millions of dollars into unprecedented promotion, but we’re still left with an intriguing matchup between the division’s no. 2 and the UFC’s fastest rising star.
Currently, Bookmaker’s UFC 189 odds have McGregor as a minus-138 favorite, with Mendes’ money line at plus+118. This is slightly surprising, since every major media outlet and the official UFC rankings have Mendes ranked higher than the Irishman.
Mendes is arguably a worse style matchup for McGregor. The one knock against the Irishman is that he's never faced a real wrestler. Mendes is, Aldo isn't. Aldo would likely oblige McGregor in a standup battle – an area where he's shown elite skills. Mendes would likely try to suffocate him.
Regardless, it's an intriguing bout. McGregor's one of the biggest 145-pounders out there, while Mendes is small for the weight class. For Mendes to even initiate a clinch, he'd have to get in range. And because McGregor utilizes so many unorthodox kicks, he fights taller than he already is.
That's not to say Mendes would be completely outclassed on the feet. Training at Team Alpha Male has raised his standup game considerably. Once primarily a wrestler, Mendes has become a superb striker in his own right. His power wrestling has translated nicely, as evidenced by his six KO/TKO stoppages in his past eight fights.
But if it came down to a kickboxing match, McGregor would have a considerable advantage. And I'm inclined to think that he could force the issue. For all his talk and flashy strikes, McGregor is supremely underrated as an athlete. I think he'd be able to sprawl-and-brawl his way to victory against an undersized Mendes.
If you bet on McGregor vs. Mendes with our UFC odds, my pick to win is McGregor. In short, his length, athleticism and striking prowess will be too much for the shorter Mendes to overcome. I see McGregor picking apart Mendes on the feet en route to a TKO in the third.
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