Conor McGregor takes on Brazilian Diego Brandao in UFC Fight Night Dublin on Saturday in the O2, but what do we really know about McGregor’s latest opponent?
Despite sounding like a 1970’s film star, albeit only because his second name sounds like Marlon Brando’s, the Brazilian fighter is a dangerous opponent for McGregor to face. Many people expect an easy win for McGregor (he’s priced 2/9 with the bookies to win) but Brandao is a quality operator and his powerful striking could cause major problems for the man from Crumlin. This fight has the potential to be a banana skin for the possibly overconfident McGregor.
Brandao is the more experienced fighter in the UFC, fighting five times under the banner since his victory in Season 14 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) in 2011. The Brazilian was one of the most feared fighters on the show and he was the opponent that nobody wanted to face, winning three of his four fights by knockout including a match-up with Brian Carraway, who famously looked for a different opponent because he was rumoured to be afraid of the aggressive and unpredictable Brandao.
Brandao was on a three-fight win streak last year before a defeat to Dustin Poirier in December ended his impressive run. The fight was embroiled in controversy as Brandao weighed in a whopping eight pounds above the 145llbs limit. Following the weigh-ins, he also threatened to stab Poirier with a pen. His aggression did little to help him in the Octagon as he was comprehensively defeated by a first round knockout in a fight which tarnished his growing reputation.
However, that does not tell the full story of the fight. It emerged after the defeat that just two weeks before his match with Poirier, Brandao’s car was hit by a drunk driver which left him unable to train or cut weight properly in the weeks coming up to his fight. He suffered back and rib injuries which may have affected his performance in the fight. He is understood to be keen to put that loss behind him and prove to the world that he is the real deal and worthy of his spot in the featherweight division.
Speaking on a recent edition of The MMA Hour Brandao said: “I don’t care about Conor. This fight is about me, to prove to myself. Because of the last fight, everyone thinks, ‘Diego’s done.’ Everybody knows I’ve been up and down. July 19, Diego is back, that is the only thing I am going to say. I cannot say nothing about Conor. He’s already a superstar, everybody know him.”
One of the most recent videos on YouTube of Brandao is of the aforementioned fight with Poirier which does not reflect kindly on the Brazilian, but it would be foolish to judge him on this performance alone. His dominant performance in TUF revealed a useful wrestling game and his striking prowess is well documented. Just take a look at this highlight reel of him.
Video via PavelGaborik
Despite being ranked nowhere near the top ten featherweights by Sherdog, Brandao is a fighter that has previously been touted as a possible champion one day and McGregor will have to be at his best to avoid an upset. Despite this, JOE believes that if McGregor performs to his potential, he will have enough in his arsenal to see off his latest opponent and we will be cheering on Conor like everybody else come Saturday night.
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