By Stuart Shikano
Conor McGregor captivated the people and rose to superstardom with his bravado, trash-talking, charisma, and of course, his mixed martial arts skills and quick knockouts in the octagon. He had won belts in two different weight classes. He had predicted fight outcomes that became eerily true, earning the nickname, “Mystic Mac.” He had crushed opponents in the octagon and in press conferences with his verbal strikes. He had become the biggest star in the UFC. So big, that he ended up fighting boxing legend Floyd Mayweather in the boxing ring in a huge PPV event. After that, where was there to go?
McGregor had been working hard to achieve success in the UFC. He was winning fights, training hard, and making a name for himself. Fighting Floyd Mayweather was a symbol of his UFC and business success. Landing that fight landed him by far, his biggest payday. It was a monster event that felt like the culmination of all the hard work McGregor had put in. So, following that was going to be interesting. Unfortunately, it was interesting for all the wrong reasons. McGregor’s name seemed to only appear in the news for bad or embarrassing reasons. McGregor was arrested and accused of doing a lot of different things — ranging from dumb to very serious. In McGregor’s lone fight post-Mayweather, he lost a one-sided fight UFC match to Khabib Nurmagomedov, that resulted in a chaotic scene with McGregor, Khabib, and members of both camps fighting. That melee broke out into the crowd. So 2018 and 2019 were not great years for McGregor inside the octagon or outside of it.
Things got bad enough where Conor McGregor did an interview with Ariel Helwani in August to apologize for his controversies. McGregor showed remorse in the interview. He also expressed hurt that fans, including his loyal Irish following had been disappointed in him. It was a different Conor McGregor than we had been used to seeing. It was a little jarring. We wondered if McGregor would have a triumphant return or if he would continue down an unfortunate path, all too familiar to the celebrities who made more money and attracted more fame than one can comprehend.
In the run to UFC 246 where Conor McGregor vs. Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone would be the main event, we saw a toned-down, focused Conor McGregor. There were no big press conference antics nor any brutal trash talk. McGregor said he had abstained from drinking in the leadup to the fight; he was not partying. He looked like he was in great shape. We heard from people in his camp and from the man himself that he was in better shape than ever and more focused than ever. It sounded convincing, but we would determine how true that was based on the result of UFC 246.
So, what did we get? We got an electrifying, efficient, dominant performance from Conor McGregor. McGregor came out roaring and determined to start strong. Viewers felt McGregor’s urge to end this fight before it really began. McGregor knocked out Cerrone in 40 seconds. McGregor missed with a left hand, then hit Cerrone in the face with his thigh. What followed were four shoulder strikes to Cerrone’s face. It looked like some John McClane, John Wick stuff. Straight out of an action movie. To do that in real life is incredible. It was an amazing sequence that will no doubt be shown for many, many years to come. I marveled at it and had never seen anything like that before. I thought it hadn’t been done before, but then thought maybe I just haven’t watched enough UFC fights. But, then after the fight, Cerrone even said he had never seen anything like that. It was believed that Cerrone had broken two bones (likely the nose and collarbone) and was taken to a hospital after the fight. After the shoulder clenches, the dominance continues for Conor, as he landed punch after punch. Cerrone was never in the fight; from the VERY beginning, McGregor was in control and ended up being successful in just about everything he attempted to do.
It was as dominant a performance as we’ve seen from Conor McGregor. The talk of old Conor being back looked true. McGregor did say he was going for the knockout in this fight, so Mystic Mac is also back. It was a huge fight for Conor as a win would increase his popularity and give him a lot of options for future fights, as well as bolster his brand and increase opportunities to make money.
It felt right seeing Conor back as victorious, draped in the Ireland flag, and being interviewed by Joe Rogan. So, who’s next as Conor’s opponent? Could it be Jorge Masvidal? Could we see a rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov? Could all this be leading up to a rematch with Floyd Mayweather? We will see. But one thing is true: the King is back. Welcome back, Conor McGregor.
StuartTheWW 