by Chris Asbrock

The UFC has been very impressive so far in 2016, putting together some fantastic fight cards. With a fight of the year candidate within the first few days of the year, it will be a tough task for the UFC to keep up the momentum and hype. However, that will be a discussion for another day because any card featuring the “Notorious” Conor McGregor, will certainly live up to the hype and expectations.

This UFC 196 card is the seventh so far already and is one of the most hyped cards we have seen in a couple of months. The original plans were to have McGregor face Lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos in a champion versus champion matchup. Those plans were quickly tossed away when dos Anjos revealed he suffered a broken foot during training. The injury to dos Anjos threw a wrench into the plans and caused Dana White to scramble and find a replacement. White reached out to numerous fighters, settling on Nate Diaz. Let’s take a look at the card for this well talked about pay-per-view card.

Amanda Nunes (11-4) vs Valentina Shevchenko (12-1)

This is a great way to kick off the main card portion of the event, with two fighters who are looking to get the next title shot. Amanda Nunes is an extremely powerful striker, landing an average of 4.17 significant strikes per minute. Of Nunes’ 11 wins, all but two of those were via knockout. With only one of her fights ever going the distance, it is certainly fair to question the conditioning of Nunes. Shevchenko is not a one trick pony and has the potential to dominate Nunes. Shevchenko is an extremely gifted kickboxer and grappler. Look for Shevchenko to survive the wave of punishment from Nunes and try to dominate in the clinch. In the end, Shevchenko will be able to survive the wave of pressure and win via decision.

Pick: Shevchenko

Corey Anderson (8-1) vs Tom Lawlor (10-5)

There is a lot of intrigue in this fight between a veteran and a relative up and comer. “Filthy” Tom Lawlor comes into this fight having won his last two fights, including a second round knockout of Gian Villante in July. Anderson comes into this fight on the same win streak. However, Anderson’s only defeat was to the same Gian Villante, via TKO. Anderson is a solid striker, landing an average of 5.37 significant strikes per minute. The accuracy of those strikes is just under 50% which is to be expected with the great volume. However, on the contrary, Anderson does absorb a lot of punishment. Lawlor is the same type of fighter, a solid striker who takes some damage. This has the makings of being a great fight with both fighters beating the hell out of each other. If the fight goes to the ground, Anderson has the slight advantage. Look for Anderson to take advantage of his superior speed and striking to punish Lawlor, ending this fight before it heads to the judges scorecards.

Pick: Anderson

Gian Villante (14-6) vs Ilir Latifi (12-4)

This is one of the toughest fights to pick on this card because either man could come away victorious. Villante had a pretty solid 2015 as he went 2-1. His lone loss was his stunning defeat to Tom Lawlor. Latifi on the other hand, fought only once last year, which was a knockout of Hans Stringer in less than a minute. You can expect Villante to build off his solid win over Anthony Perosh in November and push the pace against Latifi. However, Latifi hasn’t gone past a minute in his last two fights so it is safe to say he comes into this fight very fresh. With both fighters certainly capable of winning this fight, Villante will do just enough to get his hand raised.

Pick: Villante

Holly Holm (10-0) vs Miesha Tate (17-5)

This co-main event features the first title defense for Holly Holm. In November, Holm stunned the world, when she knocked out Ronda Rousey. Many believed Holm was just another fighter who was being fed to the mighty Rousey. The hope was to have a Rousey/Holm rematch but due to the substantial beating Holm delivered to Rousey, a rematch was not in the cards. Next up is another MMA pioneer, Miesha Tate. The former Strikeforce champ Tate, poses a tough test for Holm. When you compare the resumes, Tate has the much better MMA history. Tate is the biggest threat to Holm and her toughest opponent yet. Most would say it was Rousey who was that threat, but Holm dispatched that threat quickly and with ease. 
Tate brings many different tools to the table and her fights are never the same. She is a very resilient fighter who has taken a lot of damage and battled back for the win. That will certainly come into play tonight as Holm can push the pace. If Holm can execute her game plan as she did against Rousey, it could be another great night for the champ. Tate will not be the one-sided fighter that Rousey was, making this an interesting, yet tough fight for Holm. This has the makings of a fight of the night candidate and will certainly not disappoint. Holm is impossible to takedown and that does not bode well for Tate. If the fight goes to the ground, you will most likely see a title change. Don’t expect that to be the case. Look for this fight to stay standing with Holm being able to land more strikes. While you shouldn’t see Tate get knocked out, you can expect to see Holm get her hand raised at the end.

Pick: Holm

Conor McGregor (19-2) vs Nate Diaz (18-10)

As mentioned at the beginning, this slot was set for Rafael dos Anjos in a champion versus champion battle. When dos Anjos went down, Dana White and company did a great job in lining up a replacement, in Diaz, that will help those pay-per-view buys. These are two men who are not shy in voicing their opinions. The tension was high during the press conference and the weigh-ins last night, when the two almost came to blows. You will see a lot of those blows tonight. Both McGregor and Diaz land a large number of strikes per minute. The Irishman lands an average of 5.53 per minute while Diaz averages 4.3 significant strikes.
This fight will not be fought on the ground, as McGregor is extremely difficult to take down. If Diaz is able to take him down, his jiu-jitsu will take over and cause major problems for McGregor. With this fight set to be battled standing up, it will feature a great boxer and a great striker with agility and quickness. Diaz has the advantage in height and reach and will use that to keep McGregor at bay. McGregor will utilize his dangerous leg kicks and look to chop Diaz down. If McGregor can land those kicks on a regular basis, it will be a long night for Diaz.
McGregor heads into this fight winning 15 straight fights while Diaz is coming into this fight off one of the best performances of his career. There will be a lot to come from this fight and a win from McGregor will certainly see him placed on the big UFC 200 card coming up in July. With much more riding on a McGregor win, look for the Notorious one to get it done tonight, McGregor will use his leg kicks and striking to chop down and eventually knock out Diaz.

Pick: McGregor

With all the eyes of the combat sports world one again focused on Las Vegas, the publicity coming out of this fight will be great. With any McGregor fight, you will get a show and an event. Dana White and the rest of the UFC brass are hoping their main money maker will come through. Even though UFC 200 is a guaranteed big event, the fan fare and publicity McGregor brings is second to none. This will be a great card tonight and combat sports fans will not be disappointed with this great fight card.

Chris Asbrock is a staff writer and analyst for FTI Sports and can be followed on Twitter  and