Cole Miller is getting what he wished for. After months of calling out hotshot prospect Conor McGregor for a fistfight, the UFC has granted Miller his wish and the two featherweights will square off in a five-round non-title fight that headlines UFC Dublin, which takes place July 19 at O2 Arena in Dublin, Ireland. This is an excellent fight that makes a lot of sense for both fighters and I’m glad this is the direction the UFC decided to go in. I’m most happy that the UFC rewarded Miller for having the guts to step up and call out McGregor when not many other fighters would. Miller first called out McGregor, or “Colin McGoober” as he called it, after his UFC Fight Night 30 decision win over Andy Ogle. McGregor was injured at the time, but it didn’t stop Miller from pursuing the fight and he once again called McGregor out after submitting Sam Sicilia at UFC Fight Night 35.. For a fighter who has had 16 fights already in the Octagon, Miller has never really called anyone out before and I believe he deserves this fight against the popular McGregor based on his years of service to the UFC and his solid 10-6 record inside the Octagon. As for McGregor, he is 2-0 so far inside the Octagon and is arguably one of the most popular fighters in the UFC already despite less than 20 minutes of cage time in the world’s largest MMA promotion. The Irishman has been out since last August due to a knee injury, but after successful surgery and rehab he’s ready to return to the cage and get back to his winning ways. Blessed with natural power and excellent boxing ability, McGregor’s personality is what is getting him so much attention and headlining the UFC’s first show in Ireland in five years is a massive, massive feat for the young man. However, while McGregor has shown excellent standup so far in the UFC, don’t forget he’s lost twice by submission already, and going up against a UFC vet with great submission ability like Miller, this is no easy fight at all for McGregor. There is no line available in North America for this fight yet but there is a line in Europe and it lists McGregor as a -225 favorite with the comeback on Miller at +175. I expect the line to be relatively close to that when it does hit the North American market, with McGregor possibly being a bit juicier and Miller maybe having more plus money attached to his name. Either way, look for both sides of this line to get a lot of action on it from bettors. With this latest addition the UFC Dublin card now has six fights official for it. They are:
- Main event: McGregor vs. Miller
- Co-main event: Ryan LaFlare vs. Gunnar Nelson
- Brad Pickett vs. Ian McCall
- Nikita Krylov vs. Cody Donovan
- Phil Harris vs. Neil Seery
- Tom Lawlor vs. Ilir Latifi