As the anticipation grows ahead of UFC 196’s main event showdown between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz, we caught up with Irish MMA legend Owen Roddy as he was in transit to meet up with ‘The Notorious’ in Las Vegas.

With both Diaz and McGregor predominately famed for their showings in the striking department, we asked ‘Rowdy’ how much of a disparity he believes exists between McGregor and Diaz’s skillset.

According to the Ballymun trailblazer, McGregor is a completely “different breed” than the Stockton native.

“Nate’s got a simple strategy, we all know it,” said Roddy. “It’s that one-two. That’s all he really throws, that one-two. He baits guys in with that and then he starts to unload a few hooks to the body and the head.

“Conor is a different breed, he has every shot in the book. You know, people talk about his left hand all time, and they’re right, other fighters just can’t handle that particular technique. The thing is, he uses his diverse striking game – with the kicks and the unique entries – and that’s what sets up that left hand. It’s not as simple as his opponents just looking out for it and then it will go away.

“He has power in both hands and I think there is going to be an obvious and measurable difference between their levels when they face each other. I really expect Conor to expose a lot of the holes in his game. He’s definitely going to put him away.”

Diaz’s pitter-patter style really comes into play when he backs his opponents up against the fence. The Californian lands with tremendous volume, which leaves his opponents with no option but to cover up. However, according to ‘Rowdy’, McGregor’s movement will prove too elusive for Diaz.

Roddy added that McGregor’s counter striking is on such a high level that he is capable of knocking out anyone in the UFC’s welterweight bracket.

“Conor’s too smart to get caught against the fence and let him unload with them flurries,” said Roddy of the UFC featherweight champion. “There isn’t too much difference in their range either, it’s only an inch or two.

“What happens with a lot of Nate’s opponents is; they can’t get close enough to land on him. One reason for that is because they’re pretty static most of the time. The other reason is that they fall short with their range. Conor and Nate’s ranges are pretty identical and Conor’s one of the best movers in the whole fight game.

“He’s got fantastic head movement and he’s got that fast twitch muscle fiber all over his body. As soon as Nate fires, Conor will hit him before his hands get back to cover his head.

“The killer factor will be how Conor reacts to what Nate throws at him. It’s all about how many shots Nate can take off Conor. I know that Conor can take a shot off anyone in any of those divisions. It’s a question of whether Nate can take Conor’s power. I know that Conor is capable of knocking out any UFC welterweight.”

Roddy famously predicted that McGregor’s December 12 bout with Jose Aldo would end in the first exchange, so we thought it would be a bad idea not to query his conclusion to Saturday night’s showdown for all of you filthy gamblers. According to ‘Rowdy’, the jig will be up for the outspoken Cesar Gracie product “later in the first or early in the second.”

“I know how good Conor is at reading peoples’ patterns. We all fall into these patterns that people find predictable, but it only takes Conor about 30 seconds to figure out what you’re going to do. Once he figures out what shots are coming, he’ll finish the fight. I think he’ll stop Nate late in the first or early in the second.”

@PetesyCarroll