UFC 189: Mendes vs. McGregor will air on July 11, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
#1 CHAD “MONEY” MENDES (17-2-0) vs #3 CONOR “THE NOTORIOUS” MCGREGOR (17-2-0)
This is a five round fight for the UFC Interim Featherweight Championship. Originally this fight was suppose to be between Jose Aldo and Conor McGregor, but about two weeks ago Aldo was forced to pull from the fight due to a broken rib and therefore the UFC was forced to make an interim title fight instead for the main event. Mendes brings wrestling, great takedown defense along with speed and power that has helped him become powerful inside the octagon to where he has beaten all of his opponents, except for the current Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo, who he lost twice to. McGregor brings boxing, kickboxing, jiu-jitsu, capoeira and taekwondo, which has helped him be truly dominating inside the octagon and only hold two losses on his record, which were also outside the UFC. This fight will most likely not be as entertaining to watch as the original set up for this fight, but might still be worthwhile to watch because we will finally get to see how well McGregor performs against a wrestler who has great ground game and that always plays a factor in any fight. Though McGregor’s striking power will be something new to Mendes as he will have to defend himself against all the devastating strikes that McGregor will be throwing at him, which could prove to be very fatal against Mendes and possibly still keep him in the running for the Featherweight title against Jose Aldo. My prediction: McGregor wins via unanimous decision.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSxn5Dr02q8
C ROBBIE “RUTHLESS” LAWLER (25-10-0) vs #2 RORY “RED KING” MACDONALD (18-2-0)
This is a five round fight for the UFC Welterweight Championship. In this title fight will be two fighters that have previously faced each other in the past at UFC 167 in 2013, with Lawler being the victor in a very close split decision. Lawler brings wrestling and karate to this fight, which gives him a great combination of both takedowns and striking techniques. MacDonald brings jiu-jitsu and striking to this fight, which have helped him rise to the top of the leader board and being one of the biggest threats in the welterweight division. Both fighters have great striking and defense, which will make the fight more of a standing game. Though what will probably set the deciding factor is cardio because both fighters have lasted entire fights before, Lawler has fought in three five round fights in the UFC with two victories and one was against the former Welterweight Champion, Johny Hendricks, where he avenged his first lost to him and made a statement to everyone that as long as he is around everyone will have to watch their backs. If MacDonald can use his reach advantage over the current champion he can score some crucial points against him and possibly steal the title and become the next Canadian to hold the UFC Welterweight Title. My prediction: Lawler wins via unanimous decision.
DENNIS “THE MENACE” BERMUDEZ (15-4-0) vs JEREMY “LIL’ HEATHEN” STEPHENS (23-11-0)
This is a three round fight in the featherweight division. In this fight are two fighters that plan to make a statement by earning another win on their record with the possibility of earning a title shot and prove to the world why they are in the UFC. Bermudez brings wrestling, cardio and ground and pound to this fight, which have proven to be very effective in his fights where he not only can finish his opponents, but outlast them to the point that they no longer have any fight left in them. Stephens brings wrestling and jiu-jitsu to this fight that have been proven to be a great combination to where he has been able to knock many of his opponents out making his striking a great weapon of choice in fights. Since both fighters contain almost the same style of martial arts, I believe what will decide the victor is the skill factor as they both have fought many fights in their careers. Bermudez contains more combination and greater defense, which always plays a great role in any fight as it shows everyone who is really the better warrior. My prediction: Bermudez wins via TKO in round 2.
