Conor McGregor’s prediction that he’d finish Dennis Siver within two minutes didn’t come true.
But everything else came up roses for the brash Irish featherweight Sunday night at Boston’s TD Garden. The Dublin native dominated his UFC Fight Night 59 bout with the veteran Siver before finishing him in the second round.
Then he jumped out of the cage and got in the face of longtime UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo Jr., who was seated cageside, building the drama for their upcoming title fight.
“I’m going to hand him my spit bucket and have him spit shine the belt,” said McGregor (17-2), who improved to 5-0 in the UFC and won his 12th consecutive fight.
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McGregor put in the sort of fight that we’ve seen enough by now to call a trademark McGregor fight. He relentlessly pressured Siver, throwing kicks high, low, and to the body, then following through with uppercuts. Siver (22-10, 1 NC) could never quite get untracked as McGregor pursued him from all angles.
Siver appeared to be saved by the horn at the end of round one. But there was no saving him in round two. A straight left was the telling blow, as Siver hit the mat. McGregor got into full mount and reigned down punches an elbows until referee Herb Dean waved off the bout at 1:54. This sent the near-sellout, heavily Irish, pro-McGregor crowd into a frenzy.
“I said two minutes, I meant two rounds,” McGregor said. “Everyone says ‘my talk,'” but they never say anything about my skill or technique.”
Once the fight ended. McGregor scaled the top of the cage and sprinted at Aldo, in the front row, who smiled throughout the proceedings. McGregor will be Aldo’s next opponent, though the date and venue have yet to be decided.
Aldo, in a cageside interview on FOX Sports 1, said he was not impressed by McGregor’s performance.
“No, not impressive,” Aldo said through an interpreter. “Siver is a seasoned fighter, but not the caliber I’ve fought before.”