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“With Conor’s fighting IQ, with Conor’s understanding of the game, really, this training camp is about all of us getting out of his way.”
John Kavanagh might be Conor McGregor’s head coach at SBG Ireland but, according to Kavanagh, McGregor is the one calling the shots in the training room.
Speaking to The MAC Life ahead of McGregor’s welterweight bout with Donald Cerrone at UFC 246, Kavanagh said ‘The Notorious’ gets to decide how hard he wants train and claims the Irishman knows more about the fight game than all of his coaches put together.
“With Conor’s fighting IQ, with Conor’s understanding of the game, really, this training camp is about all of us getting out of his way,” Kavanagh said, per MMA Fighting. “Provide him an environment where he gets different looks, different feels, and support him. Where he wants the training camp to go, with intensities, and listening to him – where he has days where he has days where he wants to push hard, and days where he wants to slow down.
“It’s not so much about us coaches sitting down to game plan and then filling Conor in. Conor knows more about fighting than the rest of us put together.”
This is a very unorthodox — and possibly dangerous — training strategy for McGregor, as most — if not all — fighters and athletes are subordinate to their coaching staff.
“It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off.”
UFC 246: McGregor vs. Cerrone takes place on January 18 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.