Diaz and McGregor Trade Trash Talk

Nate Diaz has accused Conor McGregor of steroid abuse as the trash talk between the two fighters heats up ahead of their upcoming clash at UFC 196.

Diaz made the accusation about McGregor as well as the entire UFC roster at Wednesday night’s press conference ahead of the March 5th fight.

“Everybody’s on steroids,” Diaz said. “The whole UFC, everybody.”

“Your teammate Gil (Melendez) and Jake (Sheilds) were two caught on steroids,” McGregor responded.

“And you and dos Anjos,” Diaz continued.

In typical McGregor-style the Dublin fighter told reporters and fans that his rivals are in fear of him.

“Nate for me was the leading auction, there were many, many auctions. In reality, many people pretended like they wanted to fight until the fight actually presented itself,” he said.

“Frankie [EDGAR]never shut-up, and then when he was given a phone call and a date, he hasn’t been seen or heard of since.

“Jose [ALDO]was in camp apparently preparing, in case Dos Anjos pulled out. Then all of a sudden Dos Anjos pulls out with a bruised foot and Jose is not fit.

“Even Nate tried to exit the fight cleanly.

“It’s always happening…they always pull out, they always run. They always make it out like they want it, but really they don’t want it. I was expecting it.”

Dos Anjos is the sixth fighter to withdraw from fighting McGregor in his last 12 fights.

“It doesn’t matter what weight division or anything, or what belt is on the line because really I should create my own belt. I am in myself my own belt. I’m fighting for my own belt.”

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Dos Anjos Injury Ends McGregor Bout

Rafael dos Anjos has reportedly been forced to pull out of his Las Vegas bout with Conor McGregor due to a foot injury.

Featherweight champ McGregor was due to face top lightweight Dos Anjos in Vegas on 5 March in a bid to become the first UFC fighter to hold belts at two divisions simultaneously.

However, multiple sources claim Dos Anjos will not be fit for the hugely anticipated UFC 196 showdown.

Last July Jose Also withdrew from a title fight with the Dubliner at the MGM Grand Garden Arena with a rib injury, being replaced at the last minute by Chad Mendes. 

It remains to be seen whether the UFC will find an opponent for McGregor this late in the day, as the 27-year-old now faces the prospect of again fighting for an interim belt.

McGregor was vowing to become a two-weight UFC champion with victory, after securing the featherweight title in sensational fashion when he finally fought Aldo in December.

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Postive Rousey Beaten But Unbowed

Ronda Rousey’s trauma after her shock defeat to Holly Holm last year has been well documented but she has revealed new details of her feelings during a TV interview.

She gave her first sit-down interview since her defeat to Holm on Tuesday’s Ellen DeGeneres Show, and said she had felt suicidal immediately after being knocked out in Melbourne. One quote in particular gives insight into how much she had invested in her status as an unbeaten fighter:

“Honestly, my thought I was like, in the medical room and I was down in the corner,” an emotional Rousey told DeGeneres. “I was sitting in the corner [thinking[ like, ‘What am I anymore if I’m not this?’ And I was literally sitting there and thinking about killing myself and that exact second, I’m [thinking] ‘I’m nothing ... what do I do any more and no one gives a shit about me any more without this.’”

Rousey emphasised that the feelings had been temporary. “To be honest, I looked up and I saw my man [UFC fighter Travis Browne] was standing up there and I looked up at him and I was like, I need to have his babies. I need to stay alive,” she said. “I don’t know if I’d have made it without him.”

Rousey also said that some positives had come from her defeat. “Maybe winning all the time isn’t what’s best for everybody ... maybe I had to be that example of picking myself up off the floor.”

While stating she did not want to make excuses for her defeat, Rousey said the build-up to the fight had not been “perfect”. “I think the one thing that was different was that it was my third title fight in nine months and I don’t think anyone has ever attempted that before,” Ronda said.

She added that she wants her next fight to be a rematch with Holm: “Of course I want to fight Holly. I want to beat her.”

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McGregor Meets dos Anjos in March

UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor is set to challenge Rafael dos Anjos in a blockbuster showdown in Las Vegas in March – on the same night that Holly Holm makes her first title defense.

The UFC has not announced either title fight, and bout agreements have not yet been signed, but multiple sources say Holm and McGregor will headline the star-studded event in Vegas on March 5. McGregor will move up in weight to fight in the 155lb lightweight class, while bantamweight Holm will take on Miesha Tate.

Bleacher Report first reported the matchups Thursday. Sources have confirmed the bouts to ESPN. UFC 197 will take place at either the MGM Grand Garden Arena or the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

McGregor, UFC’s hottest property, is coming off a stunning 13-second knockout win over Jose Aldo on December 12, which set the record for the fastest finish in title-fight history. McGregor, from Dublin, is 7-0 in the UFC and will look to become just the third fighter ever to win UFC titles in multiple weight classes.

Holm upset Ronda Rousey for the 135lb female title at UFC 193 in November. Holm won the bout via knockout in the second round with a left head kick.

She is expected to fight Rousey again at some point, but Rousey, 28, has not yet announced when she will return to the Octagon. She did indicate to ESPN late last year she was interested in the rematch.

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McGregor Set for $100m UFC Payday

UFC chief Lorenzo Fertitta has predicted that Ireland's Conor McGregor will be the first star of mixed martial arts to earn $100m.

The UFC chairman and CEO told ESPN that the new featherweight champion would be "our first $100 millionaire."

Paperwork filed with the Nevada Athletic Commission revealed that the Crumlin fighter earned was paid $500,000 for the fight against Aldo. He also gets a $40,000 bonus paid by the UFC for the Reebok outfitting deal and a $50,000 bonus from the UFC for the performance of the night.

His earning will also be boosted by a cut from the revenue made from the record breaking pay-per-view figures.

Fertitta wouldn't be drawn on a final figure for what McGregor earned last weekend but believed that his 13-second KO of Jose Aldo left fans 'wanting more'.

Fertitta's comments come as his brother, and co-owner of the UFC, Frank is scrutinised after he was seen slamming the featherweight belt on camera as McGregor sent Aldo to the canvas within seconds of the fight beginning.

McGregor could face a six-month medical suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission, pending an X-ray on his left wrist.

His next fight promises to be another big pay day with a Jose Aldo rematch, a bout with featherweight challenger Frankie Edgar and a shot at the lightweight belt all on the cards.

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Rousey Faces Six Month Recovery

Ronda Rousey says it may take six months to fully recover from the injuries she sustained in her Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight title defeat by Holly Holm in November.

Holm, 34, ended her fellow American's unbeaten 12-fight streak with a second-round knockout in Melbourne.

"It might be three to six months before I can eat an apple, let alone take an impact," Rousey, 28, told ESPN.

The Expendables 3 star added she was hoping to reclaim her title.

"Maybe I can't do it all before my prime, before my body is done, but maybe I can," added Rousey, who is set to appear in a remake of 1980s film Road House.

On Sunday, Holm had a day named after her, at a parade in her native Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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