Conor McGregor did come out victorious against Chad Mendes at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 189 but the thing is, Mendes didn't exactly have ample time to prepare and train properly.
It will be recalled that despite short notice (three weeks to be exact), Mendes agreed to take the place of an injured Jose Aldo to face Conor McGregor. Though Mendes was at a clear disadvantage considering he didn't have enough time to prepare, the opportunity was just simply hard to resist.
Regardless of those conditions, Mendes did make a good account of himself against the Irishman. Mendes tried to ground McGregor as much as he could and the ploy seemed to be working until Mendes made that costly mistake of releasing McGregor and go for a submission.
That was all the opening that McGregor needed. He unloaded a flurry of punches on Mendes, capped by a left hook that hit its mark – Mendes' face.
The thing is, Mendes ran out of air, proof that he was not fully prepared to fight McGregor who incidentally fought with a supposed knee injury. Such was actually a concern for McGregor's camp but apparently nobody noticed until such was revealed by his coach, John Kavanagh.
So as it turns out, both fighters were playing with handicaps after all. Hence, how would a rematch sound?
Mendes will surely welcome the idea, at least if it is made official. Conditioning was a factor in that match and Mendes admitted that such prevented him from executing his game plan.
However, that possible rematch could depend on Aldo's progress. If he is up and about, Mendes may have to wait on the official word on which fighter McGregor would face.
If their records are to be considered, a McGregor vs. Aldo fight could win out. This is because Mendes had already suffered two losses at the hands of Aldo. Hence, the logical matchup is to see Aldo vs. McGregor, both conquerors of Mendes.
Mendes certainly earned a rematch with his showing but for now, he will have to wait and see. A consolation is that if granted, Mendes will be given the ample training time and face McGregor on equal footing.
