James Dielhenn
Senior Boxing Journalist @JamesDielhenn
Conor McGregor rediscovers his old, competitive self ahead of Khabib Nurmagomedov fight
Last Updated: 05/10/18 5:00pm
Forget the fame and fortune, a fight is what has always got Conor McGregor out of bed in the morning, writes James Dielhenn.
It has become too easy for McGregor to hide behind designer shades, wielding his bottle of branded whiskey in among his cult-like followers, many of whom copy his dress-sense and haircut. These are the spoils of war, and McGregor has earned every penny of his estimated worth of over £100m, but money alone is not what motivates him.
This weekend McGregor ends a two-year absence from the UFC's octagon by fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov, the opponent most likely to beat him and someone who has never previously lost. It continues McGregor's pattern of constantly walking into the fiercest battles possible and this, a million miles away from his Rolex watches and fast cars, is what defines him.
It was this refreshing attitude that made him so active from 2013 through to 2015, culminating in his 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo when he first became a UFC champion, that made McGregor so popular. The swagger helped, but it was always secondary to the fighting.
"I never sought fame in the first place, it's not something that interests me," McGregor told UFC.com this week.
"Fortune, however…"
He has been brazen about the money accrued by his fists, never more so than during the Floyd Mayweather saga of last year. That boxing match underlined McGregor's influence on the sporting world and, although he lost, it remains a record-breaking spectacle that a young lad collecting dole money four years earlier shouldn't have been capable of.
In the year since making a reported $100m payday, McGregor has appeared off the rails, a fighter by heart with no athletic pursuit to keep him humble. There was the incident where he clambered uninvited into the cage after his friend and gym-mate Charlie Ward had just won, shoving a referee who tried to restrain him. Separately he appeared loutish at a court date for speeding before then jumping back into his sports car and driving off.
The worst was to come, and laid the groundwork for this weekend's fight.
Earlier this year, the day before Nurmagomedov's most recent fight, McGregor attacked a bus holding his rival plus multiple other UFC fighters. He threw a dolly to smash the window in an attempt to rile Nurmagomedov but caused injuries to Ray Borg and Michael Chiesa, forcing their withdrawal from the next day's event. Chiesa is currently suing McGregor while Rose Namajunas, also on the bus, has since spoken of the trauma.
It is not unusual for fighters to lose focus when they're not in the gym and the nouveau riche McGregor, still just 30, was suddenly needing an outlet for his fire.
It would have been less risky to meet Nate Diaz for the third time, or entertain another fantasy fight à la Mayweather. But Nurmagomedov, in McGregor's absence, had emerged as the scariest challenge in the division and so the Irishman charged head-first into it.
Both of McGregor's world titles have been removed in the time he has spent frolicking, and one is now strapped around his upcoming opponent. That didn't sit well. It angered the competitive nature of McGregor who, no longer fighting for money, has a newfound desire to prove his brilliance inside the cage.
"It's what I love to do more than any fame or finance. Competing under those bright lights is a true test of your character," he said.
McGregor is one of the most talented MMA fighters ever but the fascination with his fight against Nurmagomedov is that they represent each other's Kryptonite. McGregor's left hand has flattened everyone it touches and Nurmagomedov is sometimes a sitting duck.
"He's timid when it comes to taking a shot. He does not like to take a smack. If you don't like to take a smack and you fight me, you're in for a long, long night."
Nurmagomedov is also a frighteningly imposing wrestler and McGregor can be taken down.
That is why this challenge appeals, and why McGregor has rediscovered the fighter of old despite his fame and fortune.
