Conor McGregor’s brash antics have led to comparisons with trash-talking genius Chael Sonnen on many different occasions. After a media workout at the TUF gym in Las Vegas, the featherweight title challenger explained, that he can understand why people do that, but that he is not comparable to anyone.
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“Look, every contest, they compare me to somebody new. I’ve been compared to Chael on many occasions, the Brazilians compare me to Chael. The Americans are trying to compare me to Muhammad Ali. I’ve been compared to Nick Diaz, I’ve been compared to Anderson Silva, I’ve been compared to everybody in the fight game. But I am just me. This just human nature. People look to relate you to somebody that they know, that they are familiar with. It’s just human nature, people do that, but time will tell that I am not any of them. I am me, and the next young kid that’s on his way up , he will be compared to me. This is human nature, but I am not Chael.”
Despite 13 wins in a row, five of them in the UFC, and the last three being dominant stoppages, people are still not talking about McGregor’s actions in the cage. Instead, everyone is focussing on what he says and does outside of it. McGregor has an explanation why.
“They’ve gotta tell themselves something: ‘He’s got this, because he can do this, it’s not because of what he can do better than me.’ Again, human nature. People will put it somewhere, so that it’s not eclipsing them. But it’s the whole package here, I don’t just talk the talk, I walk the walk, and that is it. You could bring any of the champions back — any of the people who where in the game before — back in my time, and I would still run the game.”
McGregor’s fighting skills and his striking personality have earned him many lucrative endorsement deals, including a special contract with the UFC’s new exclusive sports apparel sponsor Reebok. While lots of fighters took to social media to complain about the new deal and the incline in revenue they will have to put up with, McGregor will likely make a fortune off his separate contract. His opinion on the whole Reebok situation is: If you want something, you gotta earn it.
“I mean… it is what it is. You can either sit and you can moan and complain and become bitter about it, and then the energy will take over you and more bitterness will come, more negativity will come, and it will grow and grow and grow. Or you can sit back and say: ‘It’s time now to put in the work, to get them Reebok sponsorships’. To get them big sponsorships, you need to put in the work. You need to show up, you need to say what you’re gonna do and you need to go out and do it. You don’t need to be fake, you don’t to be anything. Be yourself, say what you’re gonna do, show up and do your job. Be positive and good things will come. This is the game we are in. You can not expect to be debut, two, three fights in, wins and losses, middle of the road, and not generating anything and expect to be given everything. You’ve gotta go and you’ve gotta take it. I am blessed, that I see things that way and everyone else should see things that way.”
Conor McGregor will battle Jose Aldo for the UFC featherweight at UFC 189 on July 11 in Las Vegas, NV.
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