Warning: Some of the language in this video is not safe for work.
Conor McGregor dishes it out better than most in MMA, but he’s also proving he can take it as well.
Since arriving in the UFC in early 2013, “Notorious” has become one of the most polari…
Warning: Some of the language in this video is not safe for work.
ConorMcGregor dishes it out better than most in MMA, but he’s also proving he can take it as well.
Since arriving in the UFC in early 2013, “Notorious” has become one of the most polarizing figures in combat sports. The Dublin native has managed this feat by providing a unique mixture of talent and self-promotion, and those efforts have taken him to the forefront of visibility on the UFC roster and positioned him to take a shot at the featherweight strap later this year.
The rising Irish star has been a force both inside and out of the cage, as he’s taken every opportunity to launch verbal barbs at his peers in the 145-pound ranks and steamrolled every opponent he’s faced inside the Octagon. While McGregor‘s skill set has certainly been impressive, it’s his quick wit and gift of gab that have brought fans to either love or hate him.
The recent world tour he shared opposite of featherweight title holder Jose Aldo cranked up the intensity in that particular department to new heights. Both champion and challenger trotted around the globe to promote their upcoming fight at UFC 189 on July 11, and from Rio deJaneiro to Dublin, McGregor wasted no opportunity to verbally and physically antagonize the dominant Brazilian champion.
While McGregor taunted Aldo throughout the multicity tour, he also proved he has a solid sense of humor as well. And never has that been more apparent than his recent stop at BTSP, where the No. 1 featherweight contender took the time to read some angry tweets sent in his direction.
The end results are phenomenal—and further proof that McGregor‘s knack for self-promotion is truly on a different level.
Getting a read on a fighter is not always the easiest thing to do in combat sports.
This especially rings true in the world of mixed martial arts where so many different styles, backgrounds, and personalities step into one cage and look to impose…
Getting a read on a fighter is not always the easiest thing to do in combat sports.
This especially rings true in the world of mixed martial arts where so many different styles, backgrounds, and personalities step into one cage and look to impose their wills. While the ultimate goal for most typically lies in victory, it’s often the catalyst and drive that ticks in at a different measure. Then there are those who seem cut from something a bit different, and Dustin Poirier is certainly part of that group.
Although his competitive nature fuels him to step into the Octagon, there are additional attributes that have made the Louisiana native a fighter to watch under the UFC banner. The 26-year-old American Top Team product comes to scrap each and every time out, but more than that, he’s aiming to push himself to a different level in the process.
And while setbacks have come along the way, that gritty and ingrained love for the fight is what continues to forge The Diamond into the competitor he is today and the champion he’s aiming to become in the future.
“Sometimes you get knocked down but you get back up,” Poirier told Bleacher Report. “I’ve never stopped believing in myself. I know I’m going to be a world champion. That’s just part of the journey with bumps and bruises and lessons learned. But you get back up. After that last fight I went back home and said, ‘All right. How are we going to get up from this? What are we going to do?’ I started working and went right back at it.
“I got right back in the gym and back to work. I never lost the love or doubted myself. I know who I am and I’m going to show everybody what I’m about. People can expect a great performance from me. Let’s see what he brings to the table, but this is a recipe for a great fight. People are going to see me at my best on Saturday.
In addition to the versatile skill set he possesses, Poirier‘s will to win is ferocious. And when that doesn’t happen, the sting in the aftermath resonates on and on. There’s no doubting the fact his recent loss to ConorMcGregor is still burning him up, but so are the three other nights he’s come up short in his professional career. Yet, rather than hang his head and wallow in what could have been, Poirier gets his heart and mind back on track and focused on regaining momentum.
While missteps can’t be taken back, they can become part of the sum total of his overall journey. Poirier‘s intensity is visual to the point it almost becomes tangible, and he will be looking to put that on display once again at Fight Night 63. The scrappy veteran will face Carlos Diego Ferreira on Saturday in Fairfax, Virginia, and he’s determined to show fight fans something special.
“This is going to be an exciting matchup,” Poirier said. “I’ve seen [Ferreira] fight a few times, and we know he has good jiu-jitsu, but he’s not out there diving for guys’ legs and trying to keep the fight on the ground. He’s out there throwing bombs and putting on a show. Those are the kinds of fights I want to be part of.
“I’m glad to be back fighting in Fairfax,” he added. “We had a hell of a fight the last time out I was out there, and this time there’s going to be a hell of a fight and I’m going to get my hand raised. It’s good to come back, fight in the same arena and get some of those vibes back. I like that.”
In addition to looking to get back to his winning ways at Fight Night 63, Poirier will also be making his official lightweight debut inside the Octagon. Where he’s competed against a who’s who of top competition in the featherweight ranks, his showing on Saturday will mark his entry into what is undoubtedly one of the deepest divisions under the UFC banner.
The 155-pound fold has grown to become a deep well of talent over the past several years, and Poirier is eager to get to work in the new division he now calls home.
“It wasn’t that I was tired of anything because I can still make the weight,” Poirier said. “It was just too taxing on my body. It’s not worth draining my body down that much because I’m trying to have longevity in this sport. I want to be healthy and happy. I feel a lot better at this weight. I’m stronger, faster, more explosive…everything is better. I’m enjoying training camps again and that’s important.
“It’s not about who is the biggest in the cage on fight night,” he added. “It’s about who is the better fighter. That’s what I’m going to do…I’m going to be the better fighter. I’m happy and you have to enjoy this, man. This is the kind of job you have to love and enjoy to be great at and you’re going to see greatness on Saturday.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Khabib Nurmagomedov has been flexing his Twitter game as of late.
In addition to being one of the fastest-rising talents in the ranks of the UFC lightweight division, the 26-year-old Dagestani has also proved to have chops on social media platforms as…
In addition to being one of the fastest-rising talents in the ranks of the UFC lightweight division, the 26-year-old Dagestani has also proved to have chops on social media platforms as well. English may be a second language to the Russian grappler, but his work within Twitter’s 140 character limit has been truly impressive.
“The Eagle” has used the online forum to take shots, make call-outs and troll fighters up and down the 155-pound ranks, and he kept things rolling in that regard with his upcoming opponent, Donald Cerrone. Nurmagomedov and “Cowboy” are set to collide at UFC 187 on May 23, with the winner figured to get the next shot at Rafael dos Anjos and the lightweight title. There is no love lost between the two fighters, and the AKA representative has used his Twitter account to consistently push the hard-charging striker’s buttons.
The most recent turn in the beef between Nurmagomedov and Cerrone came after the Jackson/Winkeljohn-trained fighter celebrated his 32nd birthday. The perennial 155-pound contender received plenty of love on Twitter, and his up-and-coming dance partner apparently didn’t want to miss out on the celebration.
While Nurmagomedov‘s tweet for Cerrone‘s birthday was the most recent barb launched between the two, it was simply one in a collection of many. The rising lightweight star has been relentless with his attacks on Cerrone since the bout was announced, and the former WEC title challenger has admitted his opponent’s trash-talking has gotten under his skin. Nevertheless, Cerrone is adamant he will take those frustrations out on Nurmagomedov during the UFC’s annual Memorial Day weekend show and hand the talented Russian his first professional defeat.
On the other hand, Nurmagomedov is confident things will go his way once the cage door closes. He believes his grappling and pressure will be too much for Cerrone to handle, and he will bring the surging contender’s seven-fight winning streak to an end in Las Vegas.
The best part of this entire ordeal is that there are several more weeks of build-up until the fight finally goes down, which should serve to generate plenty of heat and buzz before their eventual showdown at UFC 187.
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
The UFC has put plenty of promotional muscle behind the highly anticipated bout between Jose Aldo and McGregor, and UFC President Dana White believes it’s going to pay off.
The longstanding featherweight champion is set to put his title on the line aga…
The UFC has put plenty of promotional muscle behind the highly anticipated bout between Jose Aldo and McGregor, and UFC President Dana White believes it’s going to pay off.
The longstanding featherweight champion is set to put his title on the line against the Irish upstart at UFC 189 on July 11 in Las Vegas, and the organization has spared no expense to kick buzz about the fight up to a fever pitch. For the first time in the company’s history, the UFC launched a world tour that sent the 145-pound champion and challenger around the globe to promote their upcoming tilt.
The result of their efforts has captivated the MMA community, as the tension between Aldo and McGregor has steadily increased throughout. While media stops and press conferences have served to offer a glimpse of the disdain between the two fighters, the UFC’s Embedded series has provided an unprecedented look at just how heated things have gotten between the Brazilian phenom and the surging featherweight star from Dublin.
In a recent interview with MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani (h/t Bloody Elbow), the UFC front man discussed his motivations for creating the media tour and revealed the championship bout is set to pull big numbers in Las Vegas.
“This thing is going to go in seconds,” White said. “It will do a $7 million gate. When we were in Toronto, we did 65,000 seats, or 56,000, one of the two, for a $12 million gate. This is 16,000 seats for a $7 million gate.”
The UFC’s push is building toward its annual International Fight Week celebration that will kick off in the days leading up to Aldo vs. McGregor and then culminate with UFC 189, which is also set to feature a welterweight title bout between champion Robbie Lawler and No. 1 contender Rory MacDonald. The bout between “Ruthless” and the TriStar product will be a rematch, as the American Top Team representative edged out MacDonald in a closely contested affair at UFC 167 back in November 2013.
While UFC 189 is still several months away, the building friction between Aldo and McGregor, in addition to having two high-powered title fights atop the card, has already generated the big-event feel White was shooting for. The UFC set out to have a big year in 2015, and the Aldo vs. McGregor world tour is proof the company is willing to put in extra effort to make that happen.
“We ain’t out here spending the money cause we didn’t expect it,” White said. “That was my vision: This thing was going to be the biggest fight of the year and coming off the biggest first quarter that this company has ever had. Ever. That is saying a lot because we’ve had some pretty good years. This first quarter was the best in this company’s history.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Ricardo Lamas isn’t interested in playing the waiting game for another title opportunity.
A quick look at the recent history of the UFC’s featherweight division reveals that the route The Bully has traveled to reach the elite tier of the 145-pound fold…
Ricardo Lamas isn’t interested in playing the waiting game for another title opportunity.
A quick look at the recent history of the UFC’s featherweight division reveals that the route The Bully has traveled to reach the elite tier of the 145-pound fold has been anything but typical. The 32-year-old Chicago native has found victory in all but one of his seven showings since dropping down into the featherweight ranks back in 2011, with his lone setback coming against dominant Brazilian champion Jose Aldo at UFC 169 in February 2014.
Yet the road to his showdown with Junior was a trying process—and one he hasn’t forgotten.
After smashing former No. 1 contender Erik Koch at UFC on Fox 6 in his hometown in January 2013, he watched his title shot be given to lightweight contender Anthony Pettis. Lamas’ frustration from that turn of events only grew stronger, as an injury would force Showtime out of his bout with Jose Aldo at UFC 163, and the Illinois-based fighter’s upcoming bout with Chan Sung Jung was scrapped when The Korean Zombie was tapped to step in to fight the Brazilian phenom.
Lamas’ long-awaited title shot would eventually come and go, but he walked away from the experience with a clear perspective on the division he calls home. The 145-pound collective has become one of the most competitive weight classes under the UFC banner over the past two years, and it shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Therefore, Lamas knows there is no room for error if he wants another title shot, and his work inside the Octagon has supported that notion.
Following his first loss as a featherweight, Lamas rebounded strongly by picking up victories in his next two outings. His most recent win came against Dennis Bermudez at UFC 180 last November as Lamas put an abrupt end to one of the longest winning streaks in the 145-pound division. Lamas’ victory in Mexico City put him back into the running for a potential title shot, and he believes his next fight has the potential to secure another championship opportunity.
The Miami transplant will square off with former two-time title challenger Chad Mendes at Fight Night 63 when the UFC returns to Fairfax, Virginia, on April 4. Lamas is confident a victory over the Team Alpha Male staple will be the exact caliber of statement he needs to make in order to secure his next shot at the featherweight strap.
“I feel a win in this fight will put me right back at the top and next in line for a title shot,” Lamas told Bleacher Report. “Mendes is a great fighter, and I’m a guy who rises to the level of my opponents. I know this is going to be a great fight, and I believe Chad Mendes is going to bring the best out of me.
“I think I picked up a lot of momentum in my last fight. Bermudez was on a huge winning streak, and I finished him in the first round. Mendes is just a beast, and he took it to the champ in his last fight. A victory over him will solidify me as the No. 1 contender.”
While the main event at Fight Night 63 will feature two fighters who are determined to resume their respective title chases, the matchup also presents interesting stylistic aspects as well. Whereas both men found their initial success in MMA because of their strong wrestling skills, Lamas and Mendes have also shown gained improvements in their striking games in recent outings.
Aggression and killer instinct have never been in short supply for either fighter, and Lamas is confident his bout with the Sacramento-based fighter will be an action-packed affair.
“I think we match up very well with one another,” Lamas said. “We both have styles that are going to put on a great fight for the fans to watch. With two good wrestlers going in there, a lot of the time, the wrestling will cancel out. No one is able to get the takedown, and it ends up being a slugfest. Everyone loves watching those fights.
“Every single fight I train for, I prepare to go the distance,” he added. “You can’t do it any other way. You have to be ready to go the full 25 minutes. You train for the worst and hope for the best in there. That’s how I come into every fight, and I’m always ready to go.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
The UFC put a stacked offer on the table, but Brock Lesnar decided to stay put in the WWE.
While rumors of the former UFC heavyweight champion’s return to the Octagon circulated for months on sites like MMAWeekly.com, the speculation ended Tu…
The UFC put a stacked offer on the table, but Brock Lesnar decided to stay put in the WWE.
While rumors of the former UFC heavyweight champion’s return to the Octagon circulated for months on sites like MMAWeekly.com, the speculation ended Tuesday as Lesnar announced he had re-signed with the WWE and officially retired from MMA during an interview on ESPN’s SportsCenter. The news undoubtedly came as a letdown to the UFC, as The Beast Incarnate had been the promotion’s biggest star and had raised the organization to new levels of visibility during his three years under the Zuffa banner.
Yet, despite missing out on wrangling the heavyweight juggernaut for one more run on the biggest stage in mixed martial arts, UFC President Dana White had nothing but well wishes for his former champion. White spoke to TMZ Sports on Thursday and shared his belief that Lesnar ultimately made the correct move.
“I think it’s the right decision. I’m happy for him,” White said. “I think Vince gave him a deal he couldn’t refuse at the right time in his life.”
The UFC’s heavyweight division has experienced several surges of talent over the past decade, but there is no denying the exposure had peaked when Lesnar roamed the divisional ranks. The 37-year-old Minnesota native was a guaranteed draw in the pay-per-view realm as he bridged the gap between MMA and legions of professional wrestling fans.
While other heavyweights such as champion Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos have filled the physical void Lesnar left behind, no fighter on the promotional roster since his departure has matched the amount of attention he brought to a card. Nevertheless, White holds no hard feelings for how the situation played out.
“I’m happy for Vince. I’m happy for Brock and I’m happy for his family. It’s a great deal for everybody.”
Duane Finley is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
Getting a read on a fighter is not always the easiest thing to do in combat sports.