CONOR McGREGOR HAD just picked up his third professional win when Cathal Pendred first crossed paths with him at an MMA show in December 2008.
It was at Whitehall Colmcille GAA club where McGregor took just over a minute to dispose of Stephen Bailey.
Even though Pendred was still a couple of months removed from his own professional mixed martial arts debut, he knew he had just witnessed something special.
“After he knocked the guy out, he stuck his face into the camera and said: ‘I’m the fucking future’,” Pendred recalled to The42. “He was the future then but today he’s the here and now of MMA, not just in Ireland but globally too.
“Especially with Jon Jones out of the picture at the moment, Conor is now the number one superstar in the sport of MMA. And that’ll be even more so when he has that gold belt around his waist.”
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The gold belt in question is currently in the possession of Jose Aldo, but the defending UFC featherweight champion will put that strap on the line on 11 July when he faces McGregor in the main event at UFC 189 in Las Vegas.
Pendred, who recently picked up his fourth successive UFC win, will also be competing on the UFC 189 bill alongside his friend, team-mate and fellow Dubliner in just over a fortnight’s time at the MGM Grand Garden Arena — a long way from the GAA halls of north Dublin.
McGregor has been a phenomenal success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship since being signed by the organisation in 2013. That hasn’t come as any surprise to Pendred, who witnessed the development of the featherweight star at first-hand as they rose simultaneously through the regional ranks with Cage Warriors before heading to MMA’s biggest stage.
UFC welterweight Cathal Pendred. Gary Carr / INPHO
Gary Carr / INPHO / INPHO
“You could tell from the start that Conor had something special about him,” said Pendred. “He had an undeniable belief and the talent to go with it.
“I don’t think he was actually training that hard back then — he was going through a sort of transitional period — but he went away for a few months and when he came back he was just a gym rat. He never left the gym, he was always training.
“It’s funny, because everyone thinks he’s probably a lot different now after everything he’s done and everything he’s achieved, but he’s the exact same guy now as he was when I first met him.
“The impact he’s had on the sport is massive. You see guys trying to emulate him everywhere, be it the way he fights or the way he carries himself. But the thing is, especially with interviews and stuff, other guys can’t pull it off because they’re putting it on. Conor isn’t. He’s just being himself.”
As for his prediction for the 11 July bout against Jose Aldo, Pendred expects McGregor to finish the job inside the distance.
He said: “I know myself what kind of power Conor has and nobody else can match it — not just in his weight class either, because he hits harder than most welterweights and middleweights.
“As soon as Aldo feels that power he’ll look to close the distance and take Conor down. And when he does look to close the distance, he’ll get hit. I think Conor will stop him.”
'Conor is now the number one superstar in the sport of MMA'
CONOR McGREGOR HAD just picked up his third professional win when Cathal Pendred first crossed paths with him at an MMA show in December 2008.
It was at Whitehall Colmcille GAA club where McGregor took just over a minute to dispose of Stephen Bailey.
Even though Pendred was still a couple of months removed from his own professional mixed martial arts debut, he knew he had just witnessed something special.
“After he knocked the guy out, he stuck his face into the camera and said: ‘I’m the fucking future’,” Pendred recalled to The42. “He was the future then but today he’s the here and now of MMA, not just in Ireland but globally too.
The gold belt in question is currently in the possession of Jose Aldo, but the defending UFC featherweight champion will put that strap on the line on 11 July when he faces McGregor in the main event at UFC 189 in Las Vegas.
Pendred, who recently picked up his fourth successive UFC win, will also be competing on the UFC 189 bill alongside his friend, team-mate and fellow Dubliner in just over a fortnight’s time at the MGM Grand Garden Arena — a long way from the GAA halls of north Dublin.
McGregor has been a phenomenal success in the Ultimate Fighting Championship since being signed by the organisation in 2013. That hasn’t come as any surprise to Pendred, who witnessed the development of the featherweight star at first-hand as they rose simultaneously through the regional ranks with Cage Warriors before heading to MMA’s biggest stage.
“You could tell from the start that Conor had something special about him,” said Pendred. “He had an undeniable belief and the talent to go with it.
“I don’t think he was actually training that hard back then — he was going through a sort of transitional period — but he went away for a few months and when he came back he was just a gym rat. He never left the gym, he was always training.
“It’s funny, because everyone thinks he’s probably a lot different now after everything he’s done and everything he’s achieved, but he’s the exact same guy now as he was when I first met him.
“The impact he’s had on the sport is massive. You see guys trying to emulate him everywhere, be it the way he fights or the way he carries himself. But the thing is, especially with interviews and stuff, other guys can’t pull it off because they’re putting it on. Conor isn’t. He’s just being himself.”
As for his prediction for the 11 July bout against Jose Aldo, Pendred expects McGregor to finish the job inside the distance.
He said: “I know myself what kind of power Conor has and nobody else can match it — not just in his weight class either, because he hits harder than most welterweights and middleweights.
“As soon as Aldo feels that power he’ll look to close the distance and take Conor down. And when he does look to close the distance, he’ll get hit. I think Conor will stop him.”
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