He's too focused on his age... "Look how young I am with these (sales) records..."
GSP sold tickets again and again and again...why? because he was a draw that kept winning. Also, did Anderson ever prove to be a draw on his own?
Conor might be one Frankie Edgar fight away from having to really see what his draw is in a larger context. Many people have bought his hype. And even hype isn't the right word, because its hardly like he's been exposed. I don't mean it as a pejorative. But rather, the rest of us are debating his Aldo fight, the bad matchup that Edgar brings to the table, the difficulty Conor will have at the top of 155 should he move that direction.
Conor talks that he is fast ("155 is stuck in the mud", etc.) and movement, etc. Objectively, Conor has an amazing left and uses a long stance that makes him excellent at the current weight class for which he is fighting. But there's a point in which the talk does tip toe into hype as we watch Mendes hold him down on short notice and have to consider what Conor will actually look like against other competition.
So what does that all have to do with the carefully crafted look, trash talk, etc.??? None of those things work if Conor starts losing. A loud mouth that wins is a runaway train and the sky is the limit. People love to hate/watch the heel that just won't lose. That's Conor right now. Conor on the right string of opponents has a perfect personality to milk this cow for years. But what happens if the objective facts come to bear. The right schedule of Aldo, Edgar, even Mendes, and especially any of the top 5 at 155 all could put Conor on a backslide that would last longer than 18-24 months.
Conor isn't Ronda when it comes to skills gap in the competition, but he talks like he is. And that disparity is where talk becomes hype.
