Long before the Irish superstar achieved champ-champ status, he made a statement on home turf against a ferocious fighter.
It may have been a long time since we last saw him inside the Octagon but it can’t be forgotten that Conor McGregor’s accomplishments saw him obtain the label of ‘The One, The Only,’ a title that was recently given to Alex Pereira.
‘The Notorious’ is still one of the biggest names in combat sports with even the suggestion of McGregor appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience getting people excited.
However, we have come a long way from him and his Irish army taking over the UFC as was evident when McGregor was booed in Dublin at a Limp Bizkit concert.
Back in 2014, that very same building witnessed a moment that would change MMA forever as ‘The Mac’ tore the roof off the place when he dismantled a dangerous opponent in his first main event spotlight.
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Diego Brandao produces spinning wheel kick knockout whilst wearing Alex Pereira’s shorts
In the main event of UFC Fight Night 46 at the 3Arena in Dublin, Conor McGregor earned his third consecutive win inside the Octagon when he stopped Diego Brandao in the first round.
It was the Brazilian’s seventh outing in the UFC after he submitted Dennis Bermudez to win season 14 of The Ultimate Fighter as a part of Michael Bisping’s team.
The dangerous fight finisher went 6-4 in the UFC before being released from his contract in April of 2016 but he has continued to remain active ever since.
Leaving the UFC with a record of 20-11, Brandao is now 30-22 with his post-UFC career including a six-fight losing streak in Russian promotion ACA.
However, on his recent return to competing in MMA on US soil, the 37-year-old reminded fans of what made him so exciting during his stint in the UFC.
Brandao faced 12-2 Jamie Siraj in the main event of Tuff-N-Uff 142 in Las Vegas as the promotion’s featherweight champion looked to add an Octagon veteran to his record.
After stepping inside the cage wearing the custom UFC shorts of Alex Pereira which have featured in some highlight reel knockouts throughout 2024, Brandao produced what is likely to be one of the very best of 2025.
Following a right body kick, the challenger spun and landed a clean spinning wheel kick with his left leg to dethrone the champion in the opening round.
Diego Brandao was a perfect opponent for Conor McGregor
Diego Brandao was the ideal opponent for Conor McGregor to bring the Octagon to Dublin in 2014.
Not only was the Brazilian’s intensity going to make for an entertaining build to the fight which only increased the excitement, his incredibly aggressive style played right into the hands of the sharp and composed McGregor.
His loss to ‘The Notorious’ marked back-to-back first-round losses for Brandao having been stopped by Dustin Poirier the fight before.
In his final Octagon appearance, he was submitting by Brian Ortega in the third round at UFC 195 before travelling the world to compete elsewhere.