Conor McGregor hasn’t fought for over a year but he’s stepping back into the octagon on January 18, 2020 when he takes on Donald Cerrone at UFC 246 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Only time will tell if “The Notorious” McGregor can put his off-field problems to one side and let his fighting do the talking. Current betting odds suggest he will.
There was a time when Conor McGregor was the poster boy for the UFC. The trash-talking Irishman seemed unstoppable. Then he started to believe the hype surrounding him and took his foot off the gas.
A submission defeat to Nate Diaz at UFC 196 saw Mcgregor lose his first fight at welterweight. He, of course, won the rematch at UFC 202 before returning to lightweight and winning the title when he TKO (punches) Eddie Alvarez. He was later stripped of the title due to inactivity.
Last time out, in October 2018, McGregor fought Khabib Nurmagomedov for the lightweight belt. Mcgregor lost that fight. Ugly scenes after the fight resulted in McGregor being banned from fighting for six months.
Since then, McGregor has been arrested twice. once for strong-armed robbery and criminal mischief, and again for assault.
The UFC needs a focussed McGregor. He’s not been the same since his multi-million dollar boxing match with Floyd Mayweather and we hope he can get back to concentrating on his UFC career.
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone is going to be no pushover but it is difficult to back him even at +190, which you can get with Bovada right now on top of a $250 bonus. Six of Cerrone’s last 10 bouts have ended in defeat, including his last two fights.
That said, nobody has more wins or finishes in the UFC so Mcgregor needs to be wary of the Colorado native.
If the McGregor we know and love turns up for this fight it will be one-way traffic and McGregor will be value for his -240 UFC odds. Should he be over-confident or be ring rusty after his layoff and Cerrone is more than capable of a +190 upset.
Pick: McGregor to win by TKO in Round 2
Two of the other fights on the UFC 246 card are ripe to put in a parlay bet. We hit two predictions from three in UFC 245, including predicting the Kamaru Usman versus Colby Covington fight not finishing in the early stages.
The first of these two bouts sees Antony Pettis (+175) take on Carlos Ferreira (-225). Pettis has the power to knockout Ferreira but Ferreira is an expert at getting the job done with a decision; six of Pettis’ nine defeats have come from the judges.
The other fight worth mentioning is Holly Holm (-145) versus Raquel Pennington (+115). Both ladies are exceptional fighters, but Holm just edges it for us. She already has beaten Pennington and while she’s lost five of her last seven fights, those losses include taking on Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg, and Germaine de Ranadamie.
A $50 parlay bet on McGregor, Ferreira and Holm all winning returns $122.88, which is pretty good in our eyes. Taking the other side of that bet would return a cool $807.31 but the former is far more likely to happen.
See below the top sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
About the Author
As a devout aficionado of sports, Chris Boline has carved a career within the athletic realm. A skilled scribe, he boasts a decade-long portfolio that encompasses coverage of the NBA G League, the Los Angeles Chargers, football and basketball across the country. Beyond his professional pursuits, Chris is deeply invested in his community and dedicates his leisure hours to serving on boards, collaborating with community organizations, and cherishing the company of loved ones. CURRENTLY Business Development and freelance sports writing RESIDES IN Reno, NV EDUCATION University of Nevada BS and MBA EXPERTISE -Sports writing proficiency in: NFL, NBA, UFC, boxing, golf, and some motor sports -Topical news -Promotional and marketing ideas/updates -Business development Summary Chris Boline serves in a business development sales capacity as his day job. He has previously held sales/marketing positions with The Applied Companies (TAC), KTVN 2 News and the NBA G League’s Reno Bighorns, affiliate of the Sacramento Kings. He is a Reno native and is a member of various community boards including the Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, NCET and the College of Business Alumni Association (COBAA). Chris graduated from the University of Nevada in 2015 with a bachelors in management and economics and also earned his MBA from Nevada in 2023. More about Chris: Past president of the College of Business Alumni Association (COBAA) 2022-23 Two-time honoree for University of Nevada Alumni Chapter of the Year (Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, 2017 & COBAA, 2021) 2021 NCET award for Professional Services Organization of the Year with TAC Northern Nevada Human Resources Association 2020 Best Places to Work-Northern Nevada, Second Place with TAC 2016-17 Reno Bighorns MVP from the Sacramento Kings The Nevada Sagebrush editor-in-chief 2013-15 Associated Collegiate Press 2015 Four-year Non-daily Newspaper Pacemaker honoree University of Nevada, Reno College of Business Dean's List honoree (5x) from 2011-2015 Nevada Press Association award for Best Sports Column – Community in 2015 Education
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