In the run-up to the fight, McGregor launched all the insults he could. Lewis Smith, a writer for MMA UK, says a good example of this is McGregor’s bout against José Aldo. You have to talk trash because that brings money.” “When the fight is over, everyone goes in opposite sides with money in the pocket. In boxing as in MMA, it plays a dual role, the fighters edging for the psychological upper hand, the promoters using tension between opponents to leverage as much coverage in the run-up to a fight as possible.Īnd it works. When you’re facing someone one-on-one, getting in their heads can help you get ahead in some ways – and one way the big names do this is through insulting them. In combat sports, trash-talking is a tactic as old as fighting itself. Whatever you call it, the aim of the game is to get in your opponent’s head by insulting them, and the question here is - has it gone too far? It can be found in most sports - in fact, some have different names for it. To understand how we got here, you need to understand the history of trash-talk. White defended its use in promotional material saying it was ‘ part of the storyline’. Instead, what UFC did was use footage from the incident to hype the later fight against Nurmagomedov – treating it as if it were any other piece of classic trash-talk. He wasn’t pulled from the card, he wasn’t fined. Sure, the law had its way – McGregor accepted a plea deal – but there seemed to be no consequences for him from UFC. In reality, McGregor’s ‘despicable move’ had few repercussions for the fighter. I think after this disgusting and despicable move, I think everybody’s relationship (including mine) with Conor is going to be not so great.” He added: “This was a really bad career move for him. Moments before McGregor was forced to tap out by Nurmagomedov “This is the most disgusting thing that has ever happen in the history of the company,” he said. In one of the pressers, McGregor referenced the event, saying: “I just thank the Lord Jesus Christ that that man doesn’t have the balls to step off that bus … this man would be dead right now.”Īt the time, UFC president Dana White was publicly incandescent. In April, two fighters were injured after McGregor threw a trolly through a bus window carrying a number of UFC fighters - including Khabib. Indeed, there was a dark cloud looming over UFC 229, hanging around the event like a bad smell from the off. It wasn’t the first time McGregor had taken the fight out of the ring. “It’s a skill which can sometimes be just as important as punching or wrestling” As trash-talking goes, it was nasty and calculated to systematically get inside Nurmagomedov’s head. In the second press conference, he turned up so late Khabib actually left instead of waiting for him. From the first pre-fight press conference onwards the Irishman unleashed all the bravado and machismo his patented brand of swagger could muster - from calling his opponent’s trainer a terrorist, insulting his Muslim faith, to predicting he’d “knock that man’s nose straight up into the nosebleeds”. It is safe to say, after seeing him make the unorthodox throw, Jerry Jones didn’t rush down from the owners box to offer him a contract.He may not have fancied chatting much at that point, but in the run up to this fight, Conor McGregor, true to his personal brand, would not stop talking. Three years ago he was at AT&T Stadium for a Cowboys game, and displayed his quarterbacking abilities, or lack-there-of before kickoff. Tonight wasn’t the first time we saw McGregor try his hand at American sports. Luckily for the fans sitting behind home plate the net stopped the wild pitch before it knocked anyone out. Cubs infielder Patrick Wisdom was sitting behind the plate, but McGregor missed him by about 20 feet wide and 10 feet high. The Dublin native took the mound, dressed to the nines in a skin tight checkered suit, and let his best fast ball fly. Much better in the octogon then the diamond One thing he is not, is a future Cy Young winner. He’s a mixed martial artist, a world champion, somewhat of a boxer, a hell of a business man, and an equally good trash talker. The former UFC featherweight champion was in Chicago on Tuesday night, and threw out the first pitch at Wrigley Field, before the Chicago Cubs hosted the Minnesota Twins. We all know how dangerous Connor McGregor is once he steps inside the octagon, but it turns out he is equally as dangerous once he steps on to the diamond.
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