Like any good teammate, Gunnar Nelson is offering his friend some advice.
The SBG fighter, whose next outing is in Holland in May, feels that Conor McGregor could be set to leave his featherweight days behind him after this month’s UFC 196 loss to Nate Diaz.
Before the fight the 27-year had spoken about being a multi-weight UFC champion and having no problem fighting at lightweight, or possibly even welterweight as he loved his steaks so much.
However, Nelson, speaking to Submission Radio, Nelson feels that the loss to Diaz was down to tactics on the night, and not an inability to conserve energy properly, as McGregor claimed.
The welterweight feels that McGregor’s career would be improved by a permanent switch to lightweight, where he was due to fight Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 196 before the Brazilian withdrew and was replaced by Diaz.
“Yeah, I would have liked to see him stay in lightweight. I think that’s the more natural weight for him and I think he would have felt a lot better, you know, felt a lot better before his fights and in the camp and not having to worry about all that major weight cut. So I think it’s more natural for him.”
Chael Sonnen claimed there was a huge weight difference when both men took to the octagon last Saturday week with Diaz at 180 and McGregor at 168.
While the weight has not been verified by either camp, Nelson feels that the days of fighters having to cut massive weight, like McGregor has had to do to make 145 for featherweight, should be outlawed.
“But you know, it is what it is, he makes the cut and he does it every time and it doesn’t seem to affect him much in the fight. But you know me; I’m not a big believer or supporter of this type of stuff, these heavy, big weight cuts. I’d like to see it taken completely out and I’d like to see people just going into the fights in their walking-around weight. You know, people just fighting other people that are the same weight, but they’re not cutting the weight. It seems like a dumb situation to me. Because some guy does it then everybody has to do it.”
McGregor’s next fight is likely to be at 145 as he defends his featherweight belt against Frankie Edgar or Jose Aldo at UFC 200. Nelson feels that the Irishman still has a future at featherweight, if only temporarily.
“I know he can do it a few more times, definitely. You know, if he needs to he can, but I would like to see him go up and have a little bit, you know, a nicer career when it comes to this. And I think it will be a longer one and it will be a more pleasant journey. It would just be a more real journey.”
