Despite the long layoff, Kenny Florian doesn’t think the odds are entirely against Conor McGregor at UFC 329.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) returns to rematch Max Holloway (27-9 MMA, 23-9 UFC) in Saturday’s main event on July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Paramount+).
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McGregor won their first outing in 2013, which took place at featherweight. Now, they will run things back at 170 pounds – a weight McGregor has competed at three times before, and Holloway none.
“I do think he’s made a concerted effort at being diligent with his mind, body, and spirit,” Florian said of McGregor on his “Anik & Florian” podcast. “And when Conor McGregor has traditionally done that, we’ve seen the best version of Conor McGregor. I think what’s probably even more worrisome in some ways is being out of competition for that long. The sport will pass you by if you’re not keeping up and evolving. However, I think Conor McGregor has been very honest in his assessment in himself, in how he’s approached the sport, how he’s approaching the sport now. I think he’s way more mature in what he’s saying, and those are really good signs.
“I also think that if you’re going to fight Max Holloway, you’re fighting him at the right time, and you’re also fighting him in the right weight class at 170, especially given Conor’s size vs. Max Holloway. Not that Max Holloway is small at all, but I think those are things that are slightly in favor of Conor McGregor. And guess what? He’s also coming in as an underdog in this fight, which is also kind of a good position to be in because I think Conor loves surprising people, as well. So I think it comes down to how Conor is coming into this fight on a technical level. Is he forcing the knockout, is he believing in his power alone, or do we get the vintage Conor McGregor that realized that it’s his creativity and offbeat rhythm that made him special?”
According to FanDuel, Holloway is a moderate -245 favorite over former UFC dual-champion McGregor, who is a +186 underdog.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Why one analyst thinks Conor McGregor is fighting Max Holloway ‘at the right time’
