Yeah that's pretty much the only reason and why Poirier will be a decent size favourite but I don't see the time off impacting Nate solid chin or his always solid cardio, especially now the fight looks to only be 3 rounds as the co main event. Diaz also has come back a couple a couple of times from year long lay offs against killers like Rafael Dos Anjos and the only issues that he had and what I see probably happening in this fight are ring rust and the lack of timing on his shots
Lack of timing and ring rust against an explosive fighter is a dangerous combination imo. I think Poirier puts him away but I'm looking forward to the fight regardless.
Nate has good cardio / a good engine anyway, and is usually able to bully people with his cardio and pressure. Whether or not the lengthy absence from the Octagon will severely affect his timing and sharpness, and just how motivated Nate is for the fight with Poirier (he's already sulking due to not being on the Khabib vs Conor card and not getting the fight with Conor) remains to be seen.
Why is Nate being allowed to fight anymore ? The dude is a walking poster boy for brain damage from repeated concussions . He has been taking headshots since his teens . If he can still feed himself at age 50 I will be surprised .
I personally think Nate will wrangle and lobby for the trilogy fight with Conor to happen regardless of the results of Khabib vs Conor and Poirier vs Nate: it seems to be the only fight he really wants at this point.
Diaz looks bony, but he can still swat, soaks-up pain like a sponge. I think he gets Poirier late. His cardio’s always good
Apparently Nate has only been ironed out once, by a flush headkick when he was really young. He is a cardio monster and likes to use his cardio to bully opponents, gradually ratcheting up the pace of a fight. It'll be intersting to see how Dustin deals with that, for sure. Also, can Nate even make 155 anymore? His last two fights have both been at 170, and he looked huge at the press conference.
The UFC are going to set the winner up with McGregor regardless of how the fight with Khabib goes lol.
