Interview
McGregor is interviewed in the bedroom of a house in Newbridge, Co. Kildare, Ireland.
Without a doubt you will see me in the UFC in the future…I started MMA a few years ago and I really, really love it. It’s like an addition for me. I train twice a day. I don’t want to do anything else…If you’re not dedicated your not going to go anywhere…My dream is to be world lightweight champion in the UFC, to have more money than I know what to do with, and have a great life for my kids and my grandkids and everyone who has come up with me…
MMA Hour interview
Helwani interviews McGregor for the first time on The MMA hour. He talks about his mental attitude:
I am an Irish legend. I’m a living legend. I see myself as the champ already…I saw myself as the champ from day one. Before I even started training I always saw myself as the champ. That’s how I see myself. I see myself already there. I visualised this conversation. I visualised this conversation. I’ve visualised the walk out. I have shots picked out that I’m gonna throw in five weeks. You see it in your head, you’re gonna see it when you arrive.
Sentana interview
McGregor is interviewed by Setanta MMA, he talks about his motivations, his coaching, goals, and money.
Every boy gets into fights. I was never bullied. Fights would happen, you’re growing up on the street, playing football or whatever. For me, it stuck in my head. Maybe another boy would forget about it. But for me, Idwelled on it. What way should I have moved there? He did this, maybe if I done that it would have turned out better. It began to build in my mind that I wanted to become really good at this, to defend myself in any situation. So I went from gym to gym – kickboxing, boxing, grappling, wrestling, just trying to learn different ways the body can move, to attack and defend. It became an obsession and before you know it you’re headlining in football stadiums.
How much better can he get?
I’m only getting better. I’m only scratching the surface but I’m still better than any one of them. I’m taking over the game, in every way shape and form.
McGregor: ‘I would kill Mayweather in 30 seconds’
In an interview with Esquire, McGregor calls out Mayweather.
I look at him as a rookie in ten other areas. If you can box, what happens if I grab hold of your legs? If you put me face-to-face with Floyd Mayweather—pound-for-pound boxing’s best—if I fought Floyd, I would kill him in less than thirty seconds. It would take me less than thirty seconds to wrap around him like a boa constrictor and strangle him.
McGregor gives emotional interview about young fan who died of cancer
In the buildup to the UFC 189 fight against Mendes, McGregor tells the story of Brendan Malone, a young fan, who died of cancer.
I got a phone call from a person at the UFC, saying the Make a Wish Foundation has reached out to them, and this kid has cancer or leukemia. And this is going to be his last wish, and his last wish is going to be to talk on the phone to you, and I didn’t know what the…so I rang the kid and we talked for a long, long time. I talked with his friends in the hospital and his family. And today, or last night, he passed away. It f-cked my head up because this little kid is in Ireland, and I’m telling the kid ‘I’m gonna take this belt, and I’ll bring the belt to you’, and I was saying we’re going to raise the belt up together.
UFC 189: Octagon interview
McGregor and Mendez give post-fight interviews in the octagon. McGregor:
I’m absolutely blown away by the support…I’ve been hearing all the while that I’ve been protected from this style of opponent, that I’ve been gifted a title shot. So when my title shot went running and they gave me the challenge I was supposed to be protected from, I decided that I’m just going to prove to people that I’m a true fighter. It doesn’t matter who it is, I’ll show up and I’ll put a finish on any fighter.
Mendes:
First of all I want to thank Conor for accepting on two weeks…The guy’s tough. He’s got the talk to back it u. These Irish guys are crazy.
UFC 189: Backstage interview
McGregor is interviewed by Olivi backstage after the fight.
I’m overwhelmed. It was a lot of work to get here…it’s been a long road, a lot of hard work. A lot of dedication…He’s a phenomenal athlete. Takedown isn’t enough in this business. I knew he was tired. I was winning every exchange, so I knew he was breaking bit by bit. I figured it would happen like that, it would be up and down, but I wold be getting the better of the exchanges. And I put him down.
Early interview: McGregor got into MMA so people would ‘leave him alone’
McGregor talks about why he got into MMA.
I just got into it. I didn’t really care about sport. Like I didn’t care about sport fighting. I didn’t get in it to be the all Ireland champion or the world champion. I just got in it so people would say ‘right, this guy can do this’ or ‘this guy does a bit of training or does something, we’ll just watch him. We’ll just leave him alone’. That was how I started doing it and, it turns out I was good at it and, I just got lost in it then and it became more than just that.
UFC 196: Octagon interview
Diaz and McGregor are interviewed directly after the fight. Diaz:
I’m not surprised…I know it was gonna be a slow start for me…He had some good punches, and he landed them, so good on him…I’m an athlete, a warrior, we should all be ready to fight, even on our worst days.
McGregor:
I took the chance going at 170. I felt I took him in the first round…but I was inefficient with my energy. I’m humble in victory and in defeat…I took a chance, came up weight, it didn’t work out. I’ll face it like a man, like a champion, and come back and do it again.
UFC 196: Backstage interview
McGregor is interviewed backstage, after the fight, by Fox Sports.
It stings real bad..I’ve been on the end of many defeats in my life and I rose back. I will not shy away from it. I will not make excuses for it. I will assess it and come back…I misinterpreted his efficiency. I blew out and he did not. He went into autopilot, while I panicked a little bit.
On Jose Aldo:
I’ve seen the Jose thing. He can celebrate through another man’s victory, but at the day when we faced he was unconscious. That’s not the sign of a true champion…When I defeated him I showed him respect. Maybe I’ll go back down and shut him up one more time.
Bjornsson: I was ‘gentle’ with McGregor
In an interview with Men’s Health, Bjornsson talks about his sparring session with McGregor, before his victory against Jose Aldo. He says he had to be careful not to injure McGregor.
I was in Ireland shooting for Game of Thrones and my friend [Icelandic UFC fighter] Gunnar Nelson was training in Dublin with Conor. I asked if I could check out a session. I knew he had a big fight coming up, so I was gentle with him.
McGregor:
We squared off as if we were gonna do it. Then all of a sudden, he’s bouncing and I’m bouncing. Next thing you know, we’re having a full, bareknuckle body shot fight.
Manager: McGregor would have fought at 155 or 170
McGregor’s manager says McGregor initially asked for the UFC 200 fight with Diaz at 170 pounds — the same weight as UFC 196. Then, after listening to Coach Kavanagh and the rest of his team, McGregor said he’d be willing to do it at 155.
At the 11th hour, before we signed the bout agreement, [McGregor] said, ‘Look, I’m hearing everybody. If everybody wants to do 155, fine. Let’s do 155’. The contract was already written at 170. And so, in Conor’s defense, he really didn’t give two sh*ts. He really wanted it at 170, because he wanted to prove he could beat him there…Conor is his own CEO, but intelligently he listens to the people around him and then makes his own final decision.
The fight will be at 170. Attar also says the rematch is not about McGregor wanting to avenge his only loss in the UFC.
For him, that loss in itself, because of how he was performing until it went the other way is yet again fueled by his own self-belief system, confidence and desire to want to continue to push the envelope with his athletic ability and his skills, no matter who is in front of him. It happens to be the guy who beat him. He wants to put the same canvas up and paint a different picture for the audience to watch.
Attar says that immediately after the loss to Diaz, McGregor watched the fight on his phone with his coach around 20 times on a loop, even before the press conference started.
[He’s] obsessed. Obsessed with it.
Johnson: I like everything about McGregor
In an interview with Heavyw8 News, Johnson praises McGregor.
I like Conor McGregor, ‘The Notorious’, I wish I took that name. I like it. I like everything about Conor McGregor…I like what he’s doing for the sport of UFC as well and I hope he doesn’t lose because it’s a fickle world. One minute everyone’s on your back, you’re the flavour of the month, you take a loss, everyone writes you off, but he’s done a lot for the sport of the UFC so far. You can’t fault him after losing, it’s how he gets back up and I think so far he’s done unbelievably well for the sport of UFC and I just hope he continues that.
Schilling: Diaz ‘humbled, humiliated’ McGregor
In an interview with MMA Underground Schilling talks about Diaz’s approach to fighting McGregor.
There is no way that any consummate professional is going to go out there and blow his wad in the first round – unless you’re Conor McGregor and you go out there and blow your wad in the first round…So, Nate’s game plan was to go out there, not get knocked-out, but not waste any energy, and pick up as the rounds went on, because you have to go five rounds. You look at Nick and Nate’s style of fighting – they don’t ever do that well in the first round. They set a pace and then they drown you in it and then by the third, fourth round, guys are shooting for takedowns because they can’t stand getting hit anymore.
On the upcoming UFC 200 fight:
It’s going to be the same fight. I think it’s so obvious the holes in Conor’s game, they were all over the place. I think the skillset that Nate has is far superior to Conor’s and Nate having a full training camp is just way different…if you’re in there with someone you look up to, and you’re intimidated by, and you’re scared of, and talking all this sh-t about, your adrenaline is going to get (expletive) really bad and you’re going to try and knock him out in the first round. And, you’re going to lose like it did the last time.
On McGregor’s “humble in victory and defeat” attitude:
No, he got humbled, and humiliated. There is a big difference between being humble, and being humbled. There’s a big difference.
White: McGregor will fight again
In an interview on The Jim Rome Show, White talks about McGregor’s retirement announcement.
We’d been going back and forth over this whole press conference and commercial thing. He’s young, he’s emotional, and I believe that’s what that was. Do I believe he’s retiring? I don’t. But if he is, I wish him well. Conor McGregor will fight again I believe. He’s a young guy, he’s a proud guy, he’s very opinionated. I think yesterday his tweet was out of frustration and not the true desire to retire…You can’t not show up to promote your fight. Especially it’s UFC 200. We’re spending like 10 million dollars in commercials and advertising and everything else, and he’s the main event, and he’s not going to be a part of it? It doesn’t work that way.
White also says reports of McGregor wanting $10 million to fight at UFC 200 are false:
That is a flat out disgusting lie. It’s a lie. Conor McGregor has never agreed to fight then come back and ask for more money. He’s never done that. He’s not like that…I’m not mad at Conor McGregor at all. I have no ill-will towards him whatsoever. Listen, he’s a big boy he made a decision not to fight at two hundred he knows what that means to him. Listen, I got three months to go and a lot of people who want to fight on it.
Pundit Arena interview
Pundit Arena interviews McGregor in Iceland.
I’m feeling good buddy, I’m feeling good. I’m over here, I’m training hard and we’ll see how things go. I’m enjoying retired life for now. I’ve been sick of the cameras a long time. Yet here you two are!
Nelson: McGregor shouldn’t cut to 145 again
In an interview with The MMAHour, Nelson says the weight cut to 145 lbs is so difficult that he would prefer to see McGregor continue his career at lightweight, which he says is a more natural weight class.
With 145 lbs, I know he can go back down and defend his title, no problem. I just think he doesn’t want to do that cut again. It’s a nasty one and I agree with him. I understand that. I would like to see him go to the 155 lbs division before going all the way up to welterweight but he’ll do whatever he feels like.
On the retirement tweet:
I think it kind of happened because he wanted to really focus on his training for this fight and he felt like going over there and doing all this media stuff was going to take away from his training and I think that’s the reason why he kind of had enough of that. Like he says, he’s done dancing like a monkey and he wants to focus on training. And I understand that…When exactly, I’m not sure but maybe UFC 201 or UFC 202. I would definitely put my money on him coming back and I believe the money is there as well.
Mayweather Snr: McGregor has ‘zero’ chance of defeating son
In an interview on Mayweather’s official boxing channel, Mayweather Snr. talks about the possibility of a fight with McGregor.
I think it would be bigger than Pacman and Floyd. You just wait and see.
On McGregor’s chances of beating his son:
Zero percent. I’m not going to say that it would be the quickest knock out of Floyd’s career. I’m not gonna say that. But it would be one of the most humiliating fights that anyone could see.
On whether the fight would actually be made:
Oh hell yes. It’s an easy test. You know what Floyd’s gonna do.
Roach: I was asked to train McGregor
Roach says he was asked to train McGregor.
They said, ‘will you train him?’ I said ‘Tell him to show up’. I like helping people. But I’m not going to train him to fight Mayweather. I’d have to train him for at least three years to get him ready for [Floyd] Mayweather…He’s a little green, but c’mon. He’s good at MMa, but come on…If you fight boxing rules the boxer will win, if you fight MMA rules the MMA guy will win…If he comes I’ll help him for sure.
White: McGregor-Mayweather ‘impossible’
In an interview on on the Russillo and Kannell show, White says that a McGregor-Mayweather matchup is ‘impossible’.
Let me put it to you this way. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather are in the same sport. It took how long for those two to fight? Now imagine how hard it would be to get [Mayweather and McGregor] to fight. They’re not in the same sport. Is this thing going to be MMA or boxing rules? Who’s getting the lion’s share of the money? This and that. It’s impossible. But like I’ve said, ‘Floyd, you want to fight Conor, call me.’