Stopped McGregor signing a bad deal before UFC debut
Kavanagh says that a couple of months before McGregor joined the UFC, someone tried to sign him as his manager to a very restrictive deal.
That would have cost him around 20-25% of his earnings in return for something like €1,000 a month. Conor was rushing to sign it, saying: ‘I’m getting a thousand euros for doin nuthin!’ I begged him not to sign – I literally ripped the deal away from him – and to this day I bring it up every now and again: ‘Do you remember that?’ Because Conor will still get a contract, flick straight to the end, and look at the number without knowing what he’s committing to…He was on the dole, earning €100 a fight and training at the height of winter in a cold gym. His annual earnings for that five-year period was something like €1,500 a year! There was no money. Now it’s a 10-car cavalcade wherever we go, but back then there was just the two of us.
Shortly after, McGregor earned a €60,000 fight bonus for his first round finish of Marcus Brimage, and is now the highest paid UFC athlete.
Kavanagh ‘beat the shit out of’ McGregor
Kavanagh talks about the first time McGregor came to his gym.
Well, it was supposed to be a spar, but it was a fight. Owen [Reddy] was the top dog back then and the new guy [McGregor] wanted to test himself…Owen had been with me a long time — he was my boy — but this new kid moved in a certain way. He was a southpaw, a good boxer and he just had a way about him that made you go: ‘What’s going to happen here?’ And he caught Owen with a good shot and put him down. [And then he floored Aisling Daly], which sounds worse than it was. He wasn’t hitting her in the head or anything, but just happened to throw a body shot that hit her in the sweet spot, the solar plexus, and put her down…I got a little emotional because Ash had been with me a long time and the other guys would look after her. But this new guy had come in and put her down, and my protective nature kicked in. I was still fighting at that stage, or hadn’t stopped that long, so I put the gloves on… actually, he has corrected me on that and says it was bare knuckles. But I held him down and beat the shit out of him, without putting too fine a point on it… I kept hitting him in the body until he couldn’t breathe and then I looked at him: ‘What’s it going to be? We can train or we can fight?’ And he was OK from the next day.
Talks about Ronaldo at J-Lo’s party
Kavanagh talks about going to J-Lo’s party with McGregor and Ronaldo. When McGregor was taken away by Lopez for a dance, Ronaldo questioned the coach.
Ronaldo comes over and tells me that he reads everything I write and follows me on Instagram. I’m thinking ‘Wait until I tell my dad about this’…[Even though I moved to another part of the party] he kept coming over, and then he would drift away, and then I’d be in another part [of the house] and he’d come over again…This guy is just like Conor. Just a one-track mind, no interest in anything else. Civilians would call them obsessed or say there was something wrong with them, but you can’t get to that level unless you have that personality.
Commission: Fine only $75,000
Bennett, the Executive Director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, says McGregor’s $150,000 fine has been misinterpreted, and that he will only pay $75,000 for the water bottle incident. The $150,000 number includes the $75,000 fine plus the value of a public-service announcement McGregor must do for the commission. McGregor also has to serve 50 hours of community service.
It appears the media and others got it wrong…I understand that he’s upset. I understand that he commands a phenomenal following and paydays and he’s a world-renowned champ. I get that he’s frustrated — $75,000 is a lot of money. But I think the remark is inappropriate. In fairness to Conor — and I say this with the utmost respect — I just don’t think he understands how the system works when he’s fined. [McGregor] wasn’t suspended, nor were people in either fighter’s camp that participated in this…I’ll be the first to say that we’ve got it right sometimes and we haven’t gotten it right other times. When we don’t, we want to right the wrong.
Predicts UFC 205 pay-per-view record
McGregor predicts UFC 205 will break PPV records:
I feel it will break the 2-million mark. That’s what I’d like, and then go from there…[It will break the record] 100 percent – I think the money is there. For UFC 202, they backed it with no money. UFC 200 is where the advertising dollars went. UFC 202 was worth double what they spent in advertising dollars. UFC 202 broke the pay-per-view record with very little push. A very, very weak undercard. Now you have me, you have New York, you have history and you have many factors. They’re pushing the advertising dollars on it.
Claims McGregor threatened him with knife
Mousasi says that McGregor threatened him after his post-UFC 204 rant.
People liked it. I just spoke the truth. Sometimes you have to say stupid shit before people notice you. I got a private message from Conor McGregor. He was cursing at me, the little fu-k. He was threatening me. I said ‘What are you going to do with your 50 kilos?’ The fu-ker was threatening me with a knife. He knows I could beat his ass any day. I said some stuff that I didn’t mean. I said ‘People don’t know who the real fighter is or not.’ Of course, he’s a top fighter. English is not my first language and I just blurt stuff out sometimes. I thought it was funny that he was messaging me.
Will slap killer clowns
McGregor talks about the ‘killer clown’ craze.
I’ve seen that, people dressing up as clowns, or something. [If I saw] some guy jumping out in a clown mask, I’d slap the head of him, pull the clown mask off him, and stick it up his ass. What the f-ck even is that? Have people been killed? You heard like maybe there’s been stabbing. It’s fuked up. Just don’t come near me in a clown suit. In fact, just don’t come near me period. If you’re in a clown suit I’ll slap you even more so.
https://twitter.com/GrabakaHitman/status/787021293195554816
Hopes Rousey took inspiration from his defeat
McGregor says he is excited by Rousey’s return to the octagon.
I’m very excited. It’s good to finally see her back. I think loses can really affect you. It’s a crazy business we’re in, especially at the very high top. I hope she took inspiration on how I came back from my defeat and I wish her all the best. She’s fighting a solid competitor.
Alvarez will be ‘unconscious’
McGregor comments on his upcoming fight with Alvarez.
I don’t think he poses any threat, I don’t believe that. He’s tough, he’s a tough kid…He’s got some good fights under his belt and good experience. So I’m expecting him to come in and fight with his heart. But I don’t see it going well for him. I feel he will be unconscious.
https://twitter.com/GrabakaHitman/status/787027975099314180
Mayweather ‘afraid of a fight’
In an interview with The LAD Bible, McGregor says Mayweather is afraid to fight (at 10m50s in video).
Floyd’s afraid of a fight. Floyd doesn’t want the fight. Floyd wants a boxing match. And I’ve already said ‘No problem! Get my f-cking money. And when you get my money then we can box, in this boxing match, under this set of specific rules that will keep you alive. I’m here. Where’s my money? Cos If you keep dropping my name and you don’t have the money I’ll show up at your front door, so we’ll see…I don’t need rules, so I’m open. Right now it’s just talk.
https://www.facebook.com/LADbible/videos/2940804295966741/
Announces COD: Infinite Warfare livestream
McGregor says he will be live-streaming the Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare beta at fb.com/callofduty
https://www.facebook.com/thenotoriousmma/posts/1389459047789057:0
White: McGregor can’t hold both belts
White says McGregor will have to give up one of his belts if he beats Eddie Alvarez in UFC 205.
If he wins, he’ll hold two belts. Then he’ll decide which one he wants to give back to me. He can’t hold both. He’ll have accomplished this. Then he’ll have to figure out which one he wants to give up. He can’t hold up two divisions.
Manager: Sparring KO is ‘BS’
Attar talks with Sonnen about McGregor’s alleged knockout during sparring.
It’s BS. If you go to Coach John Kavanagh’s page, I love that he posted a picture of him wearing a unique looking hat, sand said ‘I want to believe,’ and it reminded me of Mork & Mindy. They are false and definitely not true.
Defends McGregor after fine
White says he supports McGregor after the Irishman was fined $150,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
If you threw a water bottle and got fined a hundred and fifty thousand dollars, would you fight there again? That guy could fight on an island off the coast of Peru and sell tickets. Las Vegas needs him, he doesn’t need Las Vegas…A hundred and fifty thousand dollars for a water bottle? That’s crazy.
Will meet UFC bosses next week
Aldo will meet with UFC bosses next week to discuss his grievances with the company, and his desires to be released from his contract.
[Dana White] can offer me anything. I started to get unmotivated back then, when I lost the belt. I was the champion for so long I had the right to get an immediate rematch and they didn’t give it to me, and I wanted to walk in a different direction but ‘Dede’ [Aldo’s coach: Pederneiras] made me fight again. I went there, fought and won, and again [the McGregor fight] didn’t come. I have no desire to fight again. I don’t have any excitement to fight anymore. I have other projects in my life. I wanted to retire as champion and I’m the champion today. I want to follow another path. If they release me, that would be great, but if not, what can we do? I have other projects and that depends on this meeting we’re having with them. If I want to retire, no contract can stop me. I can go there and say [I’m retired] and they can’t force me to fight. A lawyer already looked at the contract, but I don’t want to fight. I don’t want anything.
White: Rousey to fight Cyborg on win
White says if Rousey wins her fight against Nunes, she will then face Justino.
I know that Cyborg wants that fight. Ronda wants that fight too. Ronda’s plan right now is to come back and try to win her title back. If that happens, the Cyborg fight will definitely happen.
White: McGregor does not want to fight in Las Vegas
White says McGregor never wants to fight in Las Vegas again.
Conor McGregor hit me and said, ‘I don’t ever want to fight in Nevada again. Ever.’ Now how does that make sense for the state of Nevada? That you’re gonna try fine this kid and Nate that much money. It just makes people not wanna come fight in our state. And that’s not a good thing. And, guess what? Conor McGregor doesn’t need Nevada. He can fight anywhere. He could fight in Iowa. We could put his fight on an island off the coast of anywhere. It just makes no sense for the state. It’s just terrible.
https://www.facebook.com/TheHerd/videos/1894048047483052/
Announces Rousey vs. Nunes
White announces that Rousey and Nunes will fight for the 135 pounds title in UFC 207 on December 30th.
McGregor ‘ain’t never gonna be the best’
Diaz lays into McGregor.
He’s not [great], though. On paper, he’s not. Who are the 145-pound fighters who he beat up? Nobody good, in my opinion. Just a lot of commercials and advertising. How many black belts has he tapped out? When he was talking shit back-and-forth about fighting Floyd Mayweather…like, you have already lost to two guys who are not on a legitimate level. That just tells me, look, you ain’t ever going to be the best. You already lost to two f-cking guineas. I ain’t ever losing to somebody who lost to some f-cking little Irish land guineas. That’s fact, that’s on paper. And in gym, you can see what kind of work he has put in. He ain’t working with nobody — he ain’t working with no black belts. Has no legitimate trainer.
Claims he will fight Alvarez for title after McGregor defeat
Johnson says that if he beats Nurmagomedov — despite the Russian being the favorite — on November the 12th at Madison Square Garden will out him in line for a shot at the 155 lbs crown, but only if McGregor loses to Alvarez.
I know I can’t make any mistakes against Khabib. I know I’m going to have to be damn near flawless to beat a guy of his stature. That’s what I’m going in there to do on November 12. He’s relentless with his takedowns. He lives and dies off them and he will just go for them. I think that’s one thing I’m going to have to face that I’ve never faced before in any of my opponents. His wrestling is like my striking–it’s what he lives and dies off of. He’s relentless in it and I’m relentless in my striking and we are going to have two of the best styles going up against each other. I think a win will put me in the number one contender spot…If Conor wins then I’m pretty sure Conor and Nate will fight for their trilogy for that title. That will be the fight to make if he wins. That said, I don’t think he is going to win so who knows where that puts me. Hopefully, it puts me in line for a title shot if Eddie gets the win.