Can Conor McGregor Beat Charles Oliveira?

UFC lightweight contender Conor McGregor is gearing up for arguably one of his most consequential match-ups to date. ‘The Notorious’ will aim to come out victorious in the trilogy against Dustin Poirier and avenge his last TKO loss. Poirier went down as the first man to ever stop McGregor via strikes when they met in January.

If McGregor defeats Poirier at UFC 264, he’ll be staring down the barrel of a title shot against Charles Oliveira. ‘Do Bronx’ recently captured the belt after putting away Michael Chandler in the second round of their contest. McGregor vs Oliveira is a match-up that everyone wants to see. Fans of the Irishman already envision him becoming a champion again.

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Can Conor McGregor defeat Charles Oliveira?

McGregor poses certain stylistic challenges for Oliveira which he has struggled against in the past. Early on in their potential five-round title fight bout, Conor McGregor would be a lethal force for the first seven minutes. He has concussive power in his left hand that is more akin to an artillery shell being shot out of his opponent.

McGregor marches down his opponents with brisk movement and cuts off the cage to serve up his opponents onto a favorable angle. This technique was excellently demonstrated in McGregor’s fight against Chad Mendes in 2015. Charles Oliveira tends to get pushed back as he did in the first round against Chandler.

‘The Notorious’: A array of weapons

Additionally, McGregor has in wrestling defense extensively and it won’t be easy to take him down. However, Oliveira will undoubtedly be favored on the canvas as he’s got a deep bag of tricks that he can fall back on. It will boil down to a classic striking vs grappling battle for the first 7-10 minutes of the fight.

Conor McGregor vs Nate Diaz — LAS VEGAS, NV – AUGUST 20: Conor McGregor (L) hits Nate Diaz with a left during their welterweight rematch at the UFC 202 event at T-Mobile Arena on August 20, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images)

Conor McGregor has a lot of weapons that he can differ to and Charles Oliveira will have to be hyper-vigilant. McGregor and his team craft a well-suited game plan that often has paid dividends on the big stage. When the stakes are high, Conor McGregor raises his level, and that’s an intangible weapon that can come in handy.

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