After dispatching Dustin Poirier inside of two minutes at UFC 178, even Conor McGregor’s most cynical critics would have to concede that he has something a little bit special.
The Irishman isn’t all talk. The hype would appear to be real, at least from this writer’s perspective.
Of course, there is still the question of how McGregor will hold up against an elite wrestler, but it’s time to admit that he has far more going for him than just the gift of the gab.
The 26-year-old’s popularity is starting to be reminiscent of Ricky Hatton’s in the mid-to-late 2000s.
The former two-weight boxing world champion from Manchester would routinely attract thousands of fans from around the UK and Ireland no matter where he fought. When “The Hitman” travelled to Las Vegas for fights against Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, it felt like the entire population of Manchester had descended upon Sin City.
As was the case on Friday, the weigh-in became an event in and of itself. Watching Hatton strip down to his skivvies and step on a scale would have been sufficient to attract several hundred thousand pay-per-view buys on its own.
Like the Mancunian, McGregor has a working-class appeal that strangely complements his cockiness. He is not, as some have suggested, MMA’s own “Prince” Naseem Hamed.
Hamed didn’t possess the requisite charm to offset his ego. Consequently, he was promoted as a heel. Tens of thousands of fans weren’t travelling from Hamed’s hometown of Sheffield to cheer him on.
Even in the UK, a significant percentage of fans tuned in to see him get his comeuppance. When Marco Antonio Barrera slammed Hamed face-first into the corner post during their bout in 2001, half the country cheered in unison.
That clearly isn’t the case with McGregor. Not in the UK, and certainly not in Ireland. It’s doubtful that the majority of the MMA fanbase even view the Irishman as a heel.
Some athletes are so magnetic that you are willing to forgive their excesses. Imagine the words of Muhammad Ali being spoken by a lesser personality. You’d happily remortgage your home just to watch that man take a hiding.
Of course, McGregor will have to continue to back up his lofty claims if he expects the fans to stay on his side. No one wants to hear an ordinary fighter make extraordinary claims, even if he happens to be charm personified.
But as long as the Irishman looks as extraordinary as he sounds, the fans will continue to hang on his every word. The sport has a new star right when it needed it most, and we should all be thankful for that.
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