Will Conor McGregor Be Able To Reach His Prime Again?
Conor McGregor, a (figurative) heavyweight in the world of boxing and mixed martial arts. Known as much for his antics outside the ring as in, he has been staging a comeback following his ‘retirement’ from the sport in June 2020. The ups and downs of his career have made him interesting and exciting to watch, making him one of the most popular UFC fighters in the world.
The history of McGregor & UFC
In his prime, McGregor was one of the greats. In his early career, he made a substantial impact in his home country of Ireland and public pressure on the UFC led to talks between him and UFC president Dana White who offered him a contract just days later. Since then, McGregor has more than earned his place in UFC history. Upon his signing, he became just the second Irish fighter in the UFC, and won his first UFC fight by knockout in the first round, earning his first ‘Knockout of the Night’ award. Throughout his career, McGregor has broken records and won multiple awards.
By 2014, following recovery from a knee injury, McGregor bounced back and won his first ‘Performance of the Night’ award in his comeback match against Brandao. His next fight was against Dustin Poirier, who suffered his first UFC loss by knock out at the hands of McGregor, with victory being declared at just 1 minute 46 seconds. In 2015, such was the attraction of a McGregor fight, the UFC spent more money promoting his next bout than any other fight in UFC history, including a multi-country tour and the attendance for the event and revenue broke all previous records. It was here that McGregor won his first UFC Interim Featherweight Championship, and shortly thereafter won the UFC Featherweight Championship against Jose Aldo, knocking him out in just 13 seconds, the fastest of any UFC title bout in UFC history.
His performance throughout 2016 broke a number of records (many his own!) including breaking the record for number of pay-per-view buys, and over 1.65 million. By winning the Lightweight Championship bout against Eddie Alvarez, he also became the first person in UFC history to be a champion in two weight classes, and his performance is widely considered to be one of the finest of his career, with finely honed skills, takedowns, strikes and fluid movements throughout. In 2020, after a year away from the octagon, McGregor KO’d Donald Cerrone in a welterweight bout 40 seconds into the first round, again breaking records: McGregor is the first UFC fighter to hold knockout finishes in the welterweight, lightweight and featherweight divisions, solidifying his place in history as one of the most versatile and powerful competitors.
McGregor’s boxing career
He has also been hugely successful in his boxing career, starting out as a youngster he became All-Ireland Champion at youth level. He has had some very high profile boxing fights, including against Floyd Mayweather, which Mayweather won in ten rounds by KO; a fight McGregor is keen to replay one day.
Throughout his career, there has been as much, and sometimes even more, focus on his antics outside the ring. He has a reputation for having a fiery temper and many press meetings with opponents have ended in scuffles. This has increased his visibility in mainstream media and made him known to fans of boxing and MMA as well as a new demographic, further popularising the sport.
The popular press meetings where McGregor would be face-to-face with opponents also encouraged punters to place bets on the fights after seeing the pair clash initially before the fight. Both MMA and boxing are popular sporting matches where people across the world will bet on who they think will win the fight. Recently the amount of bets placed on these type of sporting events in the USA has seen a surge with several states such as Pennsylvania and Michigan legalising sports betting in their state. McGregor’s temper has made him a popular pick with betting fans in the States as well as others across the world.
This is another reason why his return to boxing has been so hotly anticipated. On the 24th January 2021, McGregor returned to the Octagon for a rematch against long-time rival Dustin Poirier. Despite hard training, and looking leaner than ever, McGregor was unable to replicate his 2014 success, and questions have been raised over the next steps for McGregor. His rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov looks to be in jeopardy, with the Russian only looking at coming out of retirement to fight McGregor if he saw something worthy of his time. According to statements by White, Nurmagomedov was underwhelmed and less than impressed with what he witnessed. At his prime, McGregor was beaten by Nurmagomedov, and there was little to show that in current form a fight at this point would be any different. Questions have been raised over McGregor’s form, and if he is past his prime.
There are also talks about ‘Trilogy’ fights with either Poirier or Nate Diaz; McGregor has lost one and won one against both Americans, and a third fight would not only provide the opportunity to show dominance and superiority, but also be a huge revenue generator for UFC, bringing together some of the most popular fighters. The scope for further record breaking is definitely there for all involved.
McGregor has also not ruled out a return to the boxing ring, looking for a Mayweather rematch, as well as a possible bout against Manny Pacquiao, Mayweather’s arch nemesis, though a return to the Octagon is more likely. Despite the humbling defeat to Poirier, McGregor has shown time and time again that he is able to bounce back from defeat, and that he never stays down for long. At the press conference after the fight, McGregor was determined in his resolve to get back to the top of the sport, and it is clear that he should not be written off just yet.
