Donald Cerrone Coach: Conor McGregor Only Has A Left Hand
Donald Cerrone will welcome Conor McGregor back to the Octagon later this month (Sat. January 18, 2020) in the UFC 246 pay-per-view (PPV) main event. The action goes down from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Recently, Cerrone’s head coach, Jafari Vanier, spoke on Cerrone’s documentary-series “More than a Cowboy” to preview the upcoming matchup. During the conversation, Vanier offered his take on McGregor’s skillset inside the Octagon. Vanier says McGregor only really has a left hand in his arsenal that can put fighters down, as we don’t see McGregor do too much damage on the ground or with jiu-jitsu. (H/T MMA Junkie)
“If I were to look at the two, he’s got a lot more to worry about than we do,” said Vanier. “We’ve got multiple submission victories, head-kick knockout victories, we’ve got decisions. He just has a left hand. You don’t see Conor submitting anybody, you don’t even see the guy going on the ground – very rare, right? Not saying we’re going to force the fight to the ground, but what I’m saying is he’s got a lot more to worry about than we do.”
As far as the left-hand goes, Vanier believes Cerrone only needs to worry about it for about a round and a half. After that, Vanier believes McGregor tends to fade in his fights, and not too much pop is left in that left-hand shot.
“We just have to worry about a left hand in that first round – him coming out on fire,” Vanier said. “You’ve never really seen ‘Cowboy’ ever gas. After the first round and a half for Conor, (he) fades. There’s not a lot of pop in that left hand any more, footwork goes down, his hands are heavy.
“So I mean these are all things that you watch and see, so these are no secrets to what’s going on. So for us, it’s just a matter of capitalizing on those things, making sure we’re very aware, eyes open in that first round, stay away from that left hand. We stay away from that left hand, it’s going to be a short night.”
What do you make of Cerrone’s coach’s assessment of McGregor? Who are you picking to win the UFC 246 main event?
