As stadium show looms, Conor McGregor declares 'I am now the world champion'

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Zeph

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Jan 22, 2015
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By [URL='http://mmajunkie.com/author/mmajunkiewriter1']Mike Bohn[/URL]

Conor McGregor
was humble in victory when he won the interim UFC featherweight title two weeks ago at UFC 189. In his first interview since that memorable night, however, McGregor reverted back to his brash and familiar self.

McGregor (18-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) defeated Chad Mendes (17-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) by second-round TKO to win the interim 145-pound belt after champion Jose Aldo (25-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) fell out of the bout on less than two weeks notice due to a rib injury.

“The Notorious” got the better of Mendes on the feet throughout the contest. He also gave up multiple takedowns and was controlled on the ground. He lost the first round on all three judges’ scorecards and many believe he would have lost the second if not for the knockout.

Prior to the matchup questions surrounded how McGregor would fare against an elite fighter with proven wrestling credentials. He got that in Mendes and emerged victorious. A post-fight narrative formed around how Mendes would have faired with a full training camp. McGregor acknowledged, and unsurprisingly shot down, those questions.

“To the naked eye it seemed like a tough contest, and I get a giggle out of supposed experts in the field of fighting when they speak of his two-week training camp or his lack of preparation,” McGregor said on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.” “To the trained eye, you understand what you are witnessing. You are witnessing ruthless bodywork – ruthless body shooting where I teeped him into his windpipe. I cracked him into his ribs, and every time those shots dug in deep, they take rounds of you. There is no coming back from clean bodywork. It can render you useless and that’s what happened.


Conor McGregor

“He came out, I butchered his body, I rearranged his intestines, I stayed safe on the bottom when we were in those positions, I elbowed the top of his crown, I done damage and remained efficient then I rose to my feet, went back to the work on the body then his body gave up at that time. Then I punched his jaw across his face. To the trained eye, it was a ruthless performance by me. It was clinical bodywork, which was the deciding factor in the fight. It does not matter if he had a 100-week camp. It would not have made any difference. Me and him know the shape his body was in during those exchanges.”

According to FightMetric, McGregor landed 15 of 30 strikes thrown to Mendes’ body. He credited that work as a major attribute to his success, but also said the body strikes weren’t entirely thrown as a result of in-fight strategy. He said it was partially done as a message to Aldo, who was at home in Brazil recovering from the injured rib.


“Another reason I went to work on his body was because of Jose Aldo’s weak body,” McGregor said. “I knew his ribs were in pain, so I wanted to hit Chad’s body knowing that Jose was sitting under the duvet peaking above his duvet covers watching the fight, trembling as every shot to the body landed. It was another reason why I lit up his body.”


McGregor said his mental approach to the fight also impacted the outcome. He believes Mendes fought for points rather than the finish, whereas he hunted for the stoppage from beginning to end.

“It just reiterates what I know, that there is many, many bums in this business that do not understand the true meaning of fighting,” McGregor said. “I feel a lot of these people are brought up on sport; sport fighting where to score a point or gain an advantage is a victory. I was brought up where if I do not defend these strikes from these six individuals that are attacking me in this situation, I will not live to see another day. That is my upbringing to their upbringing where they score a takedown and it’s a success.

“I felt he entered the contest and all he wanted was to get takedown. For him and for the American fans and his team, they just wanted to see that takedown. That was victory for them. But it is not victory. In a fight to death, a takedown means absolutely nothing. So that is how I approach the game.”


Continued at: As stadium show looms, Conor McGregor declares ‘I am now the world champion’ | MMAjunkie

Bolded a couple of choice quotes for the lazy, but the article is well worth the read.
 

dacofty

Yea..Ok..Whatever
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
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He is the number one contender nothing more nothing less and that's debatable until he fights Edgar