Tag: John Kavanagh

Conor McGregor’s Champion Status is to be Decided by Fans & Forums – Coach Kavanagh

Conor McGregor is perhaps the most polarizing figure in mixed martial arts. Although he still assumes the title of UFC lightweight champion, the mercurial Irishman has never defended the title since capturing it from Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in Novembe…

Conor McGregor is perhaps the most polarizing figure in mixed martial arts. Although he still assumes the title of UFC lightweight champion, the mercurial Irishman has never defended the title since capturing it from Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in November 2016. According to esteemed SBG Ireland coach, John Kavanagh, the title is simply up to fans […]

Conor McGregor’s Coach No Longer Discounting Possible Rematch with Floyd Mayweather in UFC

John Kavanagh never believed a rematch between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor in mixed martial arts could ever happen. In fact, Kavanagh was so steadfast in his belief that he offered to river dance naked on the day Mayweather stepped inside the U…

John Kavanagh never believed a rematch between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor in mixed martial arts could ever happen. In fact, Kavanagh was so steadfast in his belief that he offered to river dance naked on the day Mayweather stepped inside the UFC Octagon. I will do the Riverdance naked the day Mayweather fights in […]

Quote: Conor McGregor Would Finish Khabib In Two Rounds

Despite over 14 months on the sidelines from the UFC’s biggest name, Conor McGregor’s head coach Jon Kavanagh has been doing his best to keep MMA fans interested in the lightweight champion, who hasn’t fought in MMA since winning the 155-pound belt in November 2016. Kavanagh recently addressed the idea of a title fight between […]

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Despite over 14 months on the sidelines from the UFC’s biggest name, Conor McGregor’s head coach Jon Kavanagh has been doing his best to keep MMA fans interested in the lightweight champion, who hasn’t fought in MMA since winning the 155-pound belt in November 2016.

Kavanagh recently addressed the idea of a title fight between McGregor and perennial contender Khabib Nurmagomedov, and kept it fairly predictable when it came to analyzing the matchup:

“They’re on a path to meet each other, so I’m of course watching everything he does.

“In his last fight, I just think when you’re facing somebody with the type of stopping power Conor has in his hands, if you just stand very upright and look to walk towards somebody and get a body lock, that’s a risky strategy.

“Now, Barboza is a great kicker, but trying spinning kicks on someone who can close distance quickly like Khabib and has a body lock heavy grappling game, it’s maybe not the best idea.”

Nurmagomedov has remained active (at least, for him) in McGregor’s absence, beating Michael Johnson and Edson Barboza in two dominant performances.

Meanwhile, McGregor’s status as lightweight champion hangs in the balance as Tony Ferguson’s interim belt is beginning to look more and more like the real thing. “El Cucuy” will take on Khabib in the main event of April 7’s UFC 223 in a fight where UFC president Dana White said the winner ‘will be the champion’ (whatever that means).

McGregor hasn’t given any indication as to what his next move is, and seeing how much money he made to box Floyd Mayweather last August, he may not be in a rush to get back to the grueling lifestyle of a professional fighter.

Whether McGregor will still be champion if and when he fights Nurmagomedov is the real question.

How do you see a hypothetical fight between the two going down? Does McGregor knock Nurmagomedov out within two round like Kavanagh predicts?

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John Kavanagh Says Conor McGregor is Lightweight Champion no Matter What

Conor McGregor’s long-time coach views his fighter as a champion no matter what happens in the buildup to UFC 223. On April 7, interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson will take on Khabib Nurmagomedov inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn,…

Conor McGregor’s long-time coach views his fighter as a champion no matter what happens in the buildup to UFC 223. On April 7, interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson will take on Khabib Nurmagomedov inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. The bout will be contested for 155-pound gold, but a question lingers. UFC President […]

Tony Ferguson Reacts To Coach’s Latest McGregor ‘News’

The feud between lightweight champion Conor McGregor and interim lightweight champ Tony Ferguson rages onward after an incendiary tweet by McGregor’s head coach was met with equal aplomb by “El Cucuy.” Ferguson responded to John Kavanagh, McGregor’s head coach at Straight Blast Gym in Ireland, who mocked fans who adopted a “defend or vacate” take […]

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The feud between lightweight champion Conor McGregor and interim lightweight champ Tony Ferguson rages onward after an incendiary tweet by McGregor’s head coach was met with equal aplomb by “El Cucuy.”

Ferguson responded to John Kavanagh, McGregor’s head coach at Straight Blast Gym in Ireland, who mocked fans who adopted a “defend or vacate” take on “The Notorious”, who hasn’t defended the title once since winning it back in November 2016.

Kavanagh also recently came out with another McGregor non-story about how he was ‘pushing’ for ‘The Notorious’ to return to MMA instead of boxing (yawn).

Clearly Ferguson wasn’t gonna let that slide.

The lightweight division has been in flux ever since its’ champ took time off from MMA to pursue a boxing bout with Floyd Mayweather. Khabib Nurmagomedov had a stellar performance at UFC 219 last weekend, brutalizing the-always Edson Barboza for three grueling rounds.

Many lightweights have staked a claim for McGregor’s next fight, with Ferguson winning the interim strap after submitting Kevin Lee in McGregor’s absence.

Ferguson has been angling for a unification bout with McGregor for quite some time, but with the Irishman’s unpredictable nature, not much is known about the champion’s next move. Some reports have suggested another boxing bout, and others a return to the UFC. Just who will be the man to meet him is still very much in the air.

A few years ago, a sidelined champion would without question take on the interim champ after returning from their injury or absence. GSP fought Condit, Cormier fought Jones, Lesnar fought Carwin. The list goes on. But this is the McGregor era, and the champ-champ apparently does whatever he wants.

The more Ferguson goads McGregor the better, as the Irishman has a mercurial temper and is ego driven. If the interim champion can irk McGregor well enough, he might just get the fight.

Here’s to hoping for a McGregor vs. Ferguson lightweight title fight in 2018!

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John Kavanagh Pushing Hard For Conor McGregor To Make UFC Return

2018 will be an interesting year for UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. The big question that is on everyone’s mind is will he return to MMA or go back to boxing. There is a third option, which is that he won’t fight at all. Going back to 2016, McGregor made the jump to superstardom and […]

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2018 will be an interesting year for UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor. The big question that is on everyone’s mind is will he return to MMA or go back to boxing. There is a third option, which is that he won’t fight at all.

Going back to 2016, McGregor made the jump to superstardom and the fact that he fought Nate Diaz that year twice caught the action of many fight fans as well as casual fans. This, in turn, made him a superstar.

He would go on to win his second title with a drubbing of Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 at Madison Square Garden.

Moving along to 2017, although McGregor didn’t fight in the Octagon, he was able to move to boxing for a super fight against boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr. in August, which saw Mayweather TKO him in the tenth round.

Now, the speculation of McGregor’s future is on and his head coach, John Kavanagh, recently gave his thoughts on what his fighter should do next during a recent interview with BBC Sport.

“I’m just happy to see him back, just regular training,” said Kavanagh. “He had a lot going on in his life. A lot of stuff outside of fighting was going on in his life and he seems to be getting the hang of all that.

Now he’s back training almost every day now and I think 2018 will be another big year for us. Exactly what that is, I don’t know yet, but the plan is forming. Stay tuned.”

It should be noted that the boxing bout with Mayweather wasn’t the only reason he didn’t fight under the UFC banner last year.

Early in the year, his longtime girlfriend Dee Devlin gave birth to the couple’s first child and McGregor took the first part of the year off to enjoy family time.

Now, the UFC is attempting to book McGregor against interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson, who won the title back in October. Since then, Ferguson has done everything in his power in order to get this fight made.

If it was up to Kavanagh, the promotion shouldn’t strip McGregor of the title. Also, he plans to push hard for the champion to make a UFC return instead of boxing.

“Conor’s still the champion,” said Kavanagh. “He can say what he wants but I have his belt at home. He’s still the champion. He’s making the decision on what makes sense for the next move, but it’s kind of early days yet.

We’re just watching how that has developed while he’s been away. Let’s see what happens in 2018. I’m excited about it.”

“You want to know my opinion?” said Kavanagh. “I’ll be pushing very hard for MMA. The boxing was a nice detour from what we’ve done but mixed martial arts is my passion, so if I have anything to do with it, he’ll be in the octagon this year.”

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