IN THE AFTERMATH of his win over Chad Mendes a fortnight ago, fans were given a brief glimpse at a seldom-seen, softer, more humble side to Conor McGregor.
However, as McGregor says himself, it’s “business as usual” now for the newly-crowned UFC interim featherweight champion.
The 27-year-old Dubliner was brash and boastful but — most importantly — very entertaining when he spoke to Todd Grisham on ESPN’s SportsCenter last night for his first big interview since the night he defeated Mendes at UFC 189 in Las Vegas to win UFC gold.
McGregor is currently in Vegas filming for the 22nd season of The Ultimate Fighter — set to air from 10 September — in which he’ll coach a team of European lightweights against their counterparts from the USA, who’ll be under the stewardship of Urijah Faber.
However, he confirmed that plans are currently in the works to schedule his highly-anticipated meeting with UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, which could take place in a football stadium — rumoured to be the home of the Dallas Cowboys in December.
“It is business as usual for me, life has not changed,” said McGregor. “I am straight back to work. I am currently coaching Team Europe against Team USA on The Ultimate Fighter and in the meantime I am discussing the next move.
“We are discussing 100,000-seater football stadiums across America. There are many options, there are many dates. We are also discussing Vegas.
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“The previous fight was the biggest event in UFC history; $7.2 million gate, cleared one million pay-per-view buys, it slots very high on the list of the highest MGM [Grand Garden Arena] gates, just below Mike Tyson against [Francois] Botha and just above Floyd Mayweather versus Juan Manuel Marquez. It also beat that pay-per-view number. So that was a tremendous event and one of the biggest, if not the biggest, in UFC history.
“So it’s only right. We don’t stay the same. We don’t go backwards, we always go forwards. That’s what my business partner [UFC CEO] Mr Lorenzo Fertitta always says. You don’t stay in the same spot, you move up levels. So the next level would be a big football stadium, which is in discussions.
“Dallas Stadium, there have been rumours over the years that the UFC will hold an event there if they can get a fighter of my magnitude, or a fighter of that magnitude that can generate them numbers. It has always been rumoured, but now they have me. Now we have the numbers and now is the time to strike on this if they are going to do it. But if it is there it is there, if it’s in Vegas it’s in Vegas. Make no mistake about it, it will be the biggest event in UFC history… as will every single fight that I am involved in from here on in.”
McGregor also dismissed claims that he was in trouble during the fight against Mendes. The Straight Blast Gym star lost the first round on the judges’ scorecards and was en route to dropping the second too until he put Mendes away via TKO with three seconds of the frame remaining.
“To the naked eye, it seemed like a tough contest, and I get a giggle out of supposed experts in the field of fighting when they speak about his two-week training camp or his lack of preparation.
“To the trained eye, you understand what you’re witnessing. You’re witnessing ruthless bodywork; ruthless body-shooting where I teeped him into his windpipe. I cracked him into his ribs and every time those shots dig in deep, they take rounds out of you. There is no coming back from clean bodywork, it can render you useless and that’s what happened.
“He came out, I butchered his body, I rearranged his intestines, I stayed safe on the bottom when we were in those positions, I elbowed the top of his crown, I done damage and remained efficient. Then I rose to my feet, went back to work on the body, then his body gave up at that time. Then I punched his jaw across his face.
“To the trained eye, it was a ruthless performance by me. It was clinical bodywork, which was the deciding factor on the fight. It doesn’t matter if he had a 100-week camp. It wouldn’t have made any difference. Me and him know the shape his body was in during those exchanges.”
The shots to the body of Mendes were certainly a crucial element of the contest as they clearly took a toll on the Californian’s gas tank. According to McGregor, that tactic was partly adopted as a message to Jose Aldo, who withdrew from the bout at late notice after sustaining a rub injury.
McGregor is joined in the octagon by girlfriend Dee Devlin following his win over Chad Mendes. John Locher
John Locher
McGregor said: “Another reason I went to work on his body was because of Jose Aldo’s weak body. I knew his ribs were in pain so I wanted to hit Chad’s body, knowing that Jose was sitting under the duvet, peeking above his duvet covers, watching the fight, trembling as every shot to the body landed. It was another reason why I lit up his body.”
When asked about comments from Lorenzo Fertitta, who apparently told the Irishman that he was ‘talking too much trash during the fight’ against Mendes, McGregor said: “I’ll handle my business as I feel fit. Lorenzo’s my business partner and we have a phenomenal relationship, but I do not tell him how to run the UFC so he should not tell me how to run the fight game — not yet I don’t tell him how to run the UFC, mind you.
“The reason I went in and spoke to Chad a lot was because I felt during the weigh-in, for instance, when we came out and were supposed to look at each other eye-to-eye, face-to-face, and he was bouncing around, clapping to the fans and screaming.
“I could sense that he was playing a game. I said to Dana [White, UFC president] when we were up on that stage at the weigh-in: ‘Let’s just go face-to-face so I can look him in the eye.’
“He wasn’t prepared to do that so I just knew when the fight came around and there was nowhere to run and we would have to go face-to-face and man-to-man, that I would speak to him. And when that happened, I spoke to him and I said: ‘Let’s see who takes a back-step now. Let’s see who takes the first back-step now when this bell rings.’ Then the bell rings and he didn’t come out of his corner. I marched across, I cracked him with a spinning back-kick, then I lit him up on the feet and I spoke to him.
“That’s when I began my ruthless bodywork and I could sense after the first teep to the gut that it was done. It took the wind out of his sails and I spoke to him. I said: ‘Are you done already?’ Then the fight progressed and he panicked into a takedown. He scored a takedown and in his mind that was all he needed.
“Then he was throwing his shots and I would speak to him and say: ‘You hit like a girl. You hit like a little girl.’ Then every time he threw a shot and it glanced, I would say: ‘No.’ Then that was it. I was having fun in there and I have fun in there. I like to speak as I go about my business.
“I predicted I would knock him out inside two rounds. I placed a bet with my business partners; a multi-seven-figure bet that Chad would not escape the second round. And lo and behold, when McGregor predicts something the prediction comes true. That’s what happens.”
McGregor added: “I am now the world champion. You claim it’s the interim champion, but Jose went running. Jose’s a scared little man who did not show up to fight and sat under his covers, praying for Chad Mendes to win. His whole team were praying for Chad Mendes to win so he would not face me. But his prayers went unanswered and I dominated and won.
“Now I am the featherweight world champion of the UFC. We will schedule a fight against Jose in the future and see how it plays out. Hopefully he stops running and mans up and let’s do this damn fight.”
McGregor gives first big interview as a UFC belt-holder and it's a classic
IN THE AFTERMATH of his win over Chad Mendes a fortnight ago, fans were given a brief glimpse at a seldom-seen, softer, more humble side to Conor McGregor.
However, as McGregor says himself, it’s “business as usual” now for the newly-crowned UFC interim featherweight champion.
The 27-year-old Dubliner was brash and boastful but — most importantly — very entertaining when he spoke to Todd Grisham on ESPN’s SportsCenter last night for his first big interview since the night he defeated Mendes at UFC 189 in Las Vegas to win UFC gold.
McGregor is currently in Vegas filming for the 22nd season of The Ultimate Fighter — set to air from 10 September — in which he’ll coach a team of European lightweights against their counterparts from the USA, who’ll be under the stewardship of Urijah Faber.
However, he confirmed that plans are currently in the works to schedule his highly-anticipated meeting with UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, which could take place in a football stadium — rumoured to be the home of the Dallas Cowboys in December.
“It is business as usual for me, life has not changed,” said McGregor. “I am straight back to work. I am currently coaching Team Europe against Team USA on The Ultimate Fighter and in the meantime I am discussing the next move.
“The previous fight was the biggest event in UFC history; $7.2 million gate, cleared one million pay-per-view buys, it slots very high on the list of the highest MGM [Grand Garden Arena] gates, just below Mike Tyson against [Francois] Botha and just above Floyd Mayweather versus Juan Manuel Marquez. It also beat that pay-per-view number. So that was a tremendous event and one of the biggest, if not the biggest, in UFC history.
“So it’s only right. We don’t stay the same. We don’t go backwards, we always go forwards. That’s what my business partner [UFC CEO] Mr Lorenzo Fertitta always says. You don’t stay in the same spot, you move up levels. So the next level would be a big football stadium, which is in discussions.
“Dallas Stadium, there have been rumours over the years that the UFC will hold an event there if they can get a fighter of my magnitude, or a fighter of that magnitude that can generate them numbers. It has always been rumoured, but now they have me. Now we have the numbers and now is the time to strike on this if they are going to do it. But if it is there it is there, if it’s in Vegas it’s in Vegas. Make no mistake about it, it will be the biggest event in UFC history… as will every single fight that I am involved in from here on in.”
McGregor also dismissed claims that he was in trouble during the fight against Mendes. The Straight Blast Gym star lost the first round on the judges’ scorecards and was en route to dropping the second too until he put Mendes away via TKO with three seconds of the frame remaining.
“To the trained eye, you understand what you’re witnessing. You’re witnessing ruthless bodywork; ruthless body-shooting where I teeped him into his windpipe. I cracked him into his ribs and every time those shots dig in deep, they take rounds out of you. There is no coming back from clean bodywork, it can render you useless and that’s what happened.
“He came out, I butchered his body, I rearranged his intestines, I stayed safe on the bottom when we were in those positions, I elbowed the top of his crown, I done damage and remained efficient. Then I rose to my feet, went back to work on the body, then his body gave up at that time. Then I punched his jaw across his face.
“To the trained eye, it was a ruthless performance by me. It was clinical bodywork, which was the deciding factor on the fight. It doesn’t matter if he had a 100-week camp. It wouldn’t have made any difference. Me and him know the shape his body was in during those exchanges.”
The shots to the body of Mendes were certainly a crucial element of the contest as they clearly took a toll on the Californian’s gas tank. According to McGregor, that tactic was partly adopted as a message to Jose Aldo, who withdrew from the bout at late notice after sustaining a rub injury.
McGregor said: “Another reason I went to work on his body was because of Jose Aldo’s weak body. I knew his ribs were in pain so I wanted to hit Chad’s body, knowing that Jose was sitting under the duvet, peeking above his duvet covers, watching the fight, trembling as every shot to the body landed. It was another reason why I lit up his body.”
When asked about comments from Lorenzo Fertitta, who apparently told the Irishman that he was ‘talking too much trash during the fight’ against Mendes, McGregor said: “I’ll handle my business as I feel fit. Lorenzo’s my business partner and we have a phenomenal relationship, but I do not tell him how to run the UFC so he should not tell me how to run the fight game — not yet I don’t tell him how to run the UFC, mind you.
“The reason I went in and spoke to Chad a lot was because I felt during the weigh-in, for instance, when we came out and were supposed to look at each other eye-to-eye, face-to-face, and he was bouncing around, clapping to the fans and screaming.
“He wasn’t prepared to do that so I just knew when the fight came around and there was nowhere to run and we would have to go face-to-face and man-to-man, that I would speak to him. And when that happened, I spoke to him and I said: ‘Let’s see who takes a back-step now. Let’s see who takes the first back-step now when this bell rings.’ Then the bell rings and he didn’t come out of his corner. I marched across, I cracked him with a spinning back-kick, then I lit him up on the feet and I spoke to him.
“That’s when I began my ruthless bodywork and I could sense after the first teep to the gut that it was done. It took the wind out of his sails and I spoke to him. I said: ‘Are you done already?’ Then the fight progressed and he panicked into a takedown. He scored a takedown and in his mind that was all he needed.
“Then he was throwing his shots and I would speak to him and say: ‘You hit like a girl. You hit like a little girl.’ Then every time he threw a shot and it glanced, I would say: ‘No.’ Then that was it. I was having fun in there and I have fun in there. I like to speak as I go about my business.
McGregor added: “I am now the world champion. You claim it’s the interim champion, but Jose went running. Jose’s a scared little man who did not show up to fight and sat under his covers, praying for Chad Mendes to win. His whole team were praying for Chad Mendes to win so he would not face me. But his prayers went unanswered and I dominated and won.
“Now I am the featherweight world champion of the UFC. We will schedule a fight against Jose in the future and see how it plays out. Hopefully he stops running and mans up and let’s do this damn fight.”
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