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Conor McGregor’s opponent in his surprise exhibition match at his childhood gym, Crumlin Boxing Club, said the former UFC champion caught him with a cheap shot at the start of their bout. McGregor was there for the annual Good Friday show, an event he also participated in back in 2004. His opponent was an amateur boxer, former All Ireland juvenile champion Micheal McGrane. McGregor had sparred McGrane when he showed up to train at the gym that Wednesday, and it was decided by the Crumlin coaching staff that McGrane was a suitable opponent for McGregor’s exhibition bout. Via the NY Post:
It was the cheapest shot I ever caught in me life,” McGrane, whose full-time job is an electrician, told TMZ. “You touch gloves at the start of the fight and you’re meant to go back to your corner, but Conor never went back to his corner. Conor leapt at me with a left hook. He caught me flush in the eye with his clinical left hook. But you can’t let that get to you, man, we still had a fight after that. Conor McGregor hit me a cheap shot in his own hometown.
The exhibition match was ruled a draw afterwards for ceremonial purposes. McGrane said that there was no way the referee was going to penalize McGregor for the blow. He also said that The Notorious might have been a little surprised by his tenacity in the ring.
The ref was on his side,” he laughed. “There’s no way I would have won that fight unless I knocked him out. He was a bit shocked that we didn’t give up. I’m not like most people, it takes a lot for me to give up, especially when you’re in there against a double-time world champion, I’m definitely not going to give up.
McGrane hopes to go professional after one more fight. Getting to box the former UFC double champion was an honor, one he hopes will give him a little shine as he prepares for his pro career.
I still can’t believe it. I just hope, because I’m going professional, hopefully it’s going to get me where I need to be, but I have one more year left of the electrical game and then I want to go full-time fighting. I think that’s what I want to do.
He also noted that McGregor caught him with a bodyshot in the third round that took the wind out of him. Via MMAFighting.com:
He caught me with a body shot and he took every last gasp of wind out of me,” McGrane remembered. “I didn’t think I was going to comeback from it to be honest, but when you’re looking at the crowd and you’re looking at the corner…you have to get your breath back. I got my wind back before the 10 count, so I knew I was ready to rock again.
Insomnia: Mitts and Pads Edition
Raymond Daniels brings some unconventional skill to the cage and ring.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk on mitt work — what is next for the former strawweight queen probably depends a lot on whether Jessica Andrade runs through Rose Namajunas at UFC 237.
Chad Mendes takes us back to his pre-fight warmup
Junior dos Santos warming up with UFC light heavyweight prospect Alexander Rakic
Was Chael Sonnen trying to play mind games? Lyoto Machida says he’s 100% in for their summer bout.
I’m 100% in . See you soon
— Lyoto Machida (@lyotomachidafw) April 24, 2019
Sultan Aliev really does look like the love child of Forrest Griffin and Luke Rockhold
Did Luke Rockhold and Forrest Griffin have a Russian baby? pic.twitter.com/pu3c2YOe1Z
— Jason Williams (@Jandhislespaul) April 25, 2019
Darren Till has a long way to go until he’s on Conor McGregor’s level. This meme reminds me that the Ballad of Buster Scruggs on Netflix is a must-watch for anyone who hasn’t seen it.
This defense is as strong as plot armor, as long as everyone buys into the plot
TJ Dillashaw is just going out of his way to be hated at this point
Body shot of destruction
On This Day 25 April 1998 Roy Jones Jr nearly snapped Virgil Hill in half, with one of the great body shots in boxing history. pic.twitter.com/DD9Bby7ek6
— EditinKing Boxing (@EditinKing) April 25, 2019
Combat sports this weekend
Guess I’ll post this here too…
Live Combat Sport Schedule: 4/24 – 4/29
Full schedule here: https://t.co/cYVu98JKP0 pic.twitter.com/D46F3gNaNT
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) April 25, 2019
Good Reads
- The fighting skills of Captain America, broken down by Schwan Humes
- Speaking of Captain America, how do we feel about punching Nazis these days? This is a throwback piece
- Why do we have to do this woman vs. man thing every so often? Terence Crawford thinks Claressa Shields would do well boxing Conor McGregor
- The NSAC fining Pedro Munhoz for climbing onto the cage is such utter BS
Sleep well, Maniacs! A better tomorrow is always possible. Follow me on Twitter and Facebook @Vorpality