LAS VEGAS -- Conor McGregor put on one hell of a show at UFC 189 on Saturday. He also won a UFC interim title.
Exactly which one of the two was his first priority that night might actually be a valid question.
Since he signed with the UFC in 2013, McGregor (18-2) has blurred the line between self-confidence and lunacy.
As an unranked featherweight, he declared the division was full of "rookies and has-beens." In recent fights, he's fallen into the habit of staring directly into the camera at the start of his walkout, bearing a facial expression that suggests he should be in a straightjacket instead of a Reebok fight kit.
But up until Saturday, those "crazy Conor" moments tended to show up outside the Octagon. Sure he's talked trash during fights before (and he's notoriously aggressive), but he's also been calculated. McGregor himself has hinted that it's his fight IQ that will ultimately best Aldo, characterizing the Brazilian as one-dimensional, while pointing out the accumulative damage he's taken throughout his career.
The McGregor who showed up at UFC 189 didn't seem concerned about taking damage. Rather than use his eight-inch reach advantage, McGregor sprinted at Mendes from the opening bell and leapt into a flying knee that resulted in an easy takedown. He yelled at Mendes, smiled at him, taunted him --nodded his head with a smirk any time he hit him.
"I'd land a giant elbow on his face and he'd say, 'Is that all you've got?'" said Mendes, after the fight.
It all made for exceptional viewing. It also made for arguably a more difficult fight than it perhaps had to be. No one can argue with the results -- but it does make one wonder: Will the craziness that makes McGregor so much fun, also cost him at some point?
"I told him after the fight that it was a little bit too much showmanship," said UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta. "We saw that when Anderson Silva fought Chris Weidman (July 2013). That's what it reminded me of a little bit. He laughed about it. That's his thing. He was trying to bait Mendes. I told him, 'Hey, you've got to go out there and perform. You can't do that too much.'
"At the end of the day, he's the real deal. Chad Mendes is world class -- not just in wrestling, in fighting. And Conor beat him."
Check out the full list of grades for UFC 189 below.
(A+) Gunnar Nelson (Defeated Brandon Thatch via submission, 2:54 R1)
The most subdued dude in the Octagon dropped jaws with his crushing right-hand knockdown and eventual submission over a much-bigger Thatch. The following night, Stephen Thompson did the same with a spinning wheel kick knockout against Jake Ellenberger. A future matchup between these two seems perfect to me. Nelson is still small for the welterweight division but you can't say it's exactly holding him back thus far.
(A) Robbie Lawler (Defeated Rory MacDonald via TKO, 1:00, R5)
If you haven't seen photos of the cut Lawler suffered around his lip during this five-round brawl -- good. Don't look it up. You'll never be the same. Lawler lost rounds to MacDonald (he was down 3-1 going into the fifth), but he was winning the war along the way. He said it himself after the fight, the knockout wasn't due to one punch; it was the "accumulation of a beatdown." Lawler continues to hand beatdowns out like candy on Halloween. The amount of fight in this dog has become extraordinary to watch.
(A) Rory MacDonald (Lost to Robbie Lawler via TKO, 1:00, R5)
No matter where the 25-year-old MacDonald goes from here, no one can ever question his heart after what he did on Saturday. And let's be honest, some had questioned MacDonald's heart before the Lawler fight. He seemed too calculated -- perhaps trying to remove as much 'fight' from a fight as he could. When it got ugly at UFC 189 though, MacDonald showed absolutely no signs of wanting out. And in addition to the heart, he also showed enough skill to beat Lawler in three of four rounds before going down in the fifth.
(A-) Conor McGregor (Defeated Chad Mendes via TKO, 4:57, R2)
Look, there was nothing wrong with McGregor's performance (bottom line, it was dazzling) -- but I'm just saying, had it been Jose Aldo instead of a two-week-notice version of Chad Mendes, I'm not sure McGregor would still be undefeated in the UFC. I get he has confidence in his chin. I understand he feels bulletproof in the pocket. And after what we saw on Saturday, his feelings might not be far off. But no one is invincible in this sport and when he does fight Aldo, he should make him work for every punch he lands. He can't give Aldo free shots in the way gave them to Mendes. He just can't.
(B+) Matt Brown (Defeated Tim Means via submission, 4:44, R1)
UFC 189 will go down as one of the best events in company history, but if you didn't watch start to finish, you don't know how badly it needed a "Matt Brown kickstart" heading into the final preliminary. The card was downright bad before Brown's appearance and he got the action going, which he's been known to do in the past. One of the first things he mentioned after the win was his pursuit (still) of a UFC title. While it's hard to envision fights against the likes of Johny Hendricks or Robbie Lawler going that much differently for Brown, it's not impossible. He deserves a big fight coming out of UFC 189. Carlos Condit? Please?
(B+) Jeremy Stephens (Defeated Dennis Bermudez via TKO, 0:32, R3)
You can't call Bermudez a "gatekeeper" in the featherweight division, because he's still good enough to perhaps make a run at the title, but his skill set does offer a pretty good litmus test in terms of deciding who is elite and who is not. Bermudez' relentless pressure and constant takedowns are enough to wilt plenty of fighters at 145 pounds. Stephens wouldn't give in. He lost the first round but started to pick away at Bermudez' legs in the second before annihilating him with the knee in the third. Despite all the setbacks Stephens has suffered in his career, there is hope the best is still yet to come.
(B+) Thomas Almeida (Defeated Brad Pickett via KO, 0:29, R2)
That tried-and-true scenario of an up-and-comer in a telling test against a veteran (who is, perhaps, a bit past his prime). I'll say this, Almeida didn't look all that comfortable early in this fight. Not sure if there was a reason for that installed in the game plan, but he did look hesitant in the opening minute. Once Pickett dropped him and put him in a fight, Almeida really calmed down and essentially took over the final portion of the first round and of course the finish in the second. He's still 23 and we saw that in this fight, but consider this win a landmark in his development as a bantamweight contender.
(C+) Chad Mendes (Lost to Conor McGregor via TKO, 4:57, R2)
Over and over, Mendes stated after the fight he would love to fight McGregor again with a "full training camp." It's easy to understand why. If Mendes has a better gas tank in that fight, does he go for the guillotine at the end of the second round that allowed McGregor to get back to his feet? Is he able to withstand the body shots a little more or avoid them better? Honestly, I'm curious to know the answers to those questions. Excuses don't go over well in any professional sport. but let's acknowledge the fact Mendes did only have two weeks of preparation. I thought he did about as much as he could with the opportunity.
(C) Dennis Bermudez (Lost to Jeremy Stephens via TKO, 0:32, R3)
He's going to keep swinging the hammer and plenty of rocks will break under it, but he's now two losses removed from that seven-fight win streak and the best of the best in that division have had an answer for his style. As mentioned above, he's not relegated to "gatekeeper" status yet and his next opponent will get a heavy dose of that same pressure he brings into fights, but this is a big loss in Bermudez' career.
(D) Brandon Thatch (Lost to Gunnar Nelson via submission, 2:54 R1)
It's turned into a nightmare sort of year for Thatch, who has now been submitted by smaller opponents in back-to-back fights. His first chance to headline a card (in his hometown of Denver, Colorado, no less) ended in a submission loss to Ben Henderson in February. It was easy to chalk that one up to a lack of experience, but this latest loss to Nelson forces us to temper expectations. Nelson is looking more and more world-class by the minute, make no mistake, but Thatch offered him next to nothing in this very brief encounter. Not a good night for "Rukus."