CONOR MCGREGOR believes that he could have snapped Nate Diaz’s leg moments before his submission loss at UFC 196 – but he “bottled it" because "it felt too nasty".
The 32-year-old suffered his first defeat in the UFC when he jumped up two divisions to welterweight to take on Diaz back in 2016.
Diaz, 36, was able to clinch the upset by beating McGregor with a rear naked choke – despite a positive start by the Irishman.
McGregor, however, believes that he could have avoided the defeat just moments before the fight's end.
He explained in an Instagram post last August that accompanied an image from the fight: "I actually chose not to follow thru with this kick in this exact moment [sic].
"The sensation felt horrible and I backed out of following thru with it.
"Fight would’ve been stopped no doubt tho. ID the angle on the leg and had it primed to snap.
"I bottled it but it felt too nasty. Even for me.
"Fast forward few minutes later I’m on the deck getting strangled. Mad game.
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“I’m still not for making these kicks illegal tho. You’ve got to protect your angles and your footing and that’s it. Deal with it.
“They’re horribly nasty kicks tho."
McGregor did get his own back, however, when he faced Diaz for a second time in August of that same year – winning the rematch on points after dropping the American three times in a brutal Las Vegas encounter.
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