Photo Credit: Conor McGregor (Instagram)
A young Conor McGregor brought a new revolution to the UFC, elevating the organization’s popularity to new peaks. Becoming only the second Irish fighter to join the Las Vegas-based promotion, The Notorious One gradually ascended the popularity scale after each fight.
After signing for MMA promotion in 2013, he took only two years to be a champion and three years to achieve double champion status. However, his UFC career at the pinnacle was short-lived, particularly after becoming a double champion. Once he competed in a boxing bout against Floyd Mayweather, he didn’t remain the same after his return to the Octagon.
Today, McGregor is a shadow of his former self, losing three of his last four UFC fights. His once invincible confidence seems to have shattered today, as he has also been embroiled in different controversies outside the octagon. Due to his poor performance in Octagon, the 36-year-old’s last fight took place more than three years ago.
Through this article, we analyze in detail what made the younger and more motivated version of Conor McGregor different from his recent version inside the cage.
5) The Karate Stance
Conor McGregor began Mixed Martial arts training seriously when was around seventeen years old. Additionally, he practiced boxing from twelve years old. As a striker, in his younger days, the Notorious kept a karate stance while fighting, hitting opponents from different angles, whether through punching or kicking.
In his initial UFC days, his signature karate stance was crucial to his fight strategy. As a southpaw, he always created perfect angles and openings to attack his rivals. Nevertheless, his karate stance slightly changed following his boxing encounter with the legendary Floyd Mayweather.
Once he came back to UFC after the boxing match, he couldn’t create the openings like earlier due to the alteration of his stance. Moving from karate, he started keeping more of a boxing stance, making it hard to land kicks like he would do earlier. Consequently, he would fail to connect decisive knockout blows, contributing to his three losses out of four.
4) The Unbreakable Conor McGregor Confidence
What sets them apart from the young Conor McGregor in his current version is confidence. When the Notorious One signed for UFC, he exuded confidence like no other fighter did at that period. Before his accolades in UFC, Conor built the cornerstone of his bulletproof confidence through the British MMA promotion, Cage Warriors Fighting, where he kept an eight-fight winning streak and won the Featherweight and Lightweight belts.
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Arriving in the UFC, he kept a similar winning streak until losing to Nate Diaz. He demonstrated confidence by decimating his opponents before each fight, making it a primary reason to call him ‘Mystic Mac.’ He would perfectly visualize and predict the outcomes of each match.
After his return in 2018, he attempted to do the same before his fights, but his words didn’t carry weight like they used to, and he often fumbled during press conferences. The magic of Mystic Mac was gone, as he would be seen fumbling.
3) His Mind Game Was Highly Effective
Conor McGregor, in his mid and late 20s, played psychological mind games, winning the battle in his mind before even stepping inside the octagon. His remarkable self-confidence became a tool in his victories in the mental battles against his adversaries.
For example, before the Jose Aldo fight, McGregor got into the head of the Brazilian legend with his mind games. He provoked him during press conferences with manipulative words to get into his head. He recorded the fastest knockout in UFC history, winning the Featherweight Championship in only 13 seconds, halting Aldo’s lengthy undefeated reign. Due to McGregor’s mind games before the bout, an emotional Aldo immediately went to attack Conor during the match, and the latter responded with his left hook to secure the win.
Today, McGregor’s opponents are aware of his mind games and proven tactics before each fight. Moreover, after suffering a series of losses, his psychological tactics have lost their potency.
2) He Had Quick Reflexes
Conor McGregor’s quick reflexes or counterpunches were indispensable parts of his success in his younger days in the octagon, whether in the Cage Warriors or UFC. Out of his 28 career bouts in MMA, he has 22 victories and 6 defeats.
Out of the 22 wins, an astonishing 19 came through knockouts, predominantly by his famous left-hand punches. His swift reflexes were the foundation behind his impressive knockout strikes in the octagon. His punches or counterpunches, due to sharp reflexes made him one of the dangerous fighters in his prime.
As he aged and became irregular in the octagon, McGregor’s quick reflexes slowed down significantly, especially after the Mayweather boxing match.
1) Young Conor McGregor Had Hunger For Success
Currently, at 36 years old, Conor McGregor’s net worth is approximately USD 200 million, making him the richest UFC fighter and one of the wealthiest athletes in the globe. During McGregor’s golden phase in UFC, the promotion was already paying a hefty amount, but he made a fortune following the boxing fight with Floyd Mayweather.
Besides his fighting career, The Notorious One has different businesses. Having become wealthy, his burning passion and hunger for fighting and carrying a legacy have faded.
The youthful Conor McGregor, who rose to prominence in the MMA world, came from a humble background in Ireland to establish his legacy and wealth. After accomplishing it in the UFC, he doesn’t have that old hunger to succeed as a fighter.
Avik Das is an English Literature graduate with an experience of over six years as a professional writer. He has written for renowned publications such as The Sportster, Sportskeeda, Pinkvilla, and The Things
