7. Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz 2
There was high drama leading into the rematch between McGregor and Diaz due to an out-of-control press conference just days beforehand, which saw Diaz and his team launch bottles of water at McGregor. ‘The Notorious’ countered by hurling full cans of Monster Energy back at them, much to Dana White’s dismay.
That sent pay-per-view sales through the roof, but the fight still had to deliver. And it did so in spades. There was to be no finish this time. But not for a lack of trying, with McGregor knocking Diaz down with a left hand in the first round and then doing so again twice in quick succession early in the second. Diaz was as resilient as ever, though, and later in that round, he was starting to gain momentum. He then had a strong third round that left McGregor in survival mode against the cage as the Stockton native teed off. Unlike the first fight, McGregor didn’t fold under the pressure, and the remaining two rounds were highly competitive despite fatigue setting in. That led to a nail-biting judges verdict, which McGregor narrowly won via majority decision.
