Chad Mendes: 'Everything on track, I don't stop training' in midst of shortened UFC 189 fight camp

Chad Mendes will compete for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight title for the third time, albeit in the interim, against Irish nemesis Conor McGregor at UFC 189 on July 11, 2015.

"Money" had been thrust into champion Jose Aldo's spot after the latter suffered a clean break of the rib (x-ray's here) and is now poised to settle the trash talk between he and "Notorious," which was started prior to Mendes' second crack at "Junior" in Oct 2014.

"I have the athleticism, the strength, the power, the speed. And I have wrestling to put him on his back and finish this fight. This fight is mine," Mendes said on the UFC 189 media call (transcribed by Fox Sports).

The 30-year-old, Team Alpha Male representative will undoubtedly take the experience advantage. Mendes' two career losses have come against the champion Aldo; the latter of which garnered both men 2014 "Fight of the Year" honors by a few MMA media outlets.

In total, Mendes also has more experience preparing for five-round bouts than his brash Irish opponent. He has entered three, 25-minute bouts throughout his UFC career, compared to just one for McGregor.

However, if you thought that now might be the time for McGregor to catch Mendes slipping and out of shape, well, you haven't seen anything yet.

"I don't stop training. This is training year-round. This is our job. So, I felt ready. I've been training, I've been hitting it hard," said Mendes. "I got the call three weeks out. At that point, it's just fine-tuning, getting that weight down. I don't get too far from my fight weight — 15 to 20 pounds max, you know?"

Both men are confident ahead of their UFC 189 headliner, which will take place inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Money has the added benefit of taking one of the pound-for-pound best in the sport deep into treacherous 25-minute waters in his back pocket. Meanwhile, McGregor has been wined and dined by UFC brass and has easily dispatched top-10 featherweight opponents like Dustin Poirier and Dennis Siver en route to his shot at gold.

What do you think Maniacs? Does Mendes stand a chance, or are we entering the era of the Dublinator?