Jim Miller on Diaz vs. McGregor 2 main event: 'I've seen both guys perform a lot better'

For all the fawning over Saturday night's back-and-forth main event between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz at UFC 202, there were at least a few who didn't see it as an instant classic.

One of those was Jim Miller, who fights Joe Lauzon this coming weekend at UFC on FOX 21 in Vancouver. Miller has fought Diaz at UFC on FOX 3 in 2012, and he's seen enough of McGregor to conclude that something was amiss.

"I thought it was a very compelling fight, [but] I've seen those guys perform a lot better if I'm being hypercritical," he told MMA Fighting's Esther Lin during a Facebook Live interview. "It wasn't the greatest fight in the world in my mind, because Conor got very tired. And Nate, his boxing just looked off. He wasn't striking like he normally strikes, or like he has. If he boxed Conor like he did Michael Johnson, I think the fight is different.

"It was an exciting fight because things were going on, you had all the lead-up but, again, it wasn't their best performances. But yeah, it was a good fight."

The 32-year old Miller will be looking to make it two in a row, coming off of a swift first-round TKO of Takanori Gomi at UFC 200 in July. Before then he had dropped back-to-back fights against Diego Sanchez and Michael Chiesa.

Yet just like most fighters from featherweight to welterweight, Miller would love to get his hands on McGregor, should he make the move to lightweight, as many believe he will.

Asked what he thought about McGregor potentially ending up in his division, Miller smiled.

"Let's do it, you know?" he said. "It's a step up. As you get into the heavier divisions, even just that 10 pounds, guys start hitting harder. Featherweight and lightweight are very similar weight classes in my opinion. But, that being said, as a featherweight you need to have that speed. Where there are guys at 55, they're a little bit slower but they make it work. As you go down, guys don't hit as hard, but you need to have that cardio to keep the pace up, so it's a little bit different of a dynamic. He has fought as a lightweight in the past, but this is the deep end of the pool. So we'll see how it goes. He's obviously a talented fighter and very capable."