Conor McGregor is nowhere to be found a few weeks before his return. Will this turn out to be good or bad news for the UFC star?
On their Good guy/bad guy podcast, Chael Sonnen and Daniel Cormier weighed in on the situation, taking differing views on McGregor canceling a press conference in Dublin that was planned to promote his UFC 303 main event fight with Michael Chandler on June 29.
Little is known about the reason for the cancellation, but Sonnen offered a more positive view of the situation, suggesting that McGregor may have put his media responsibilities aside to focus on preparing for the fight.
“From what I have right now, I don’t agree with the speculation at all,” Sonnen said. “I think Conor McGregor is maybe for the first time starting to focus. People love to use that word, they talk about focus, I don’t know if people know what that means. This means you say “no” a lot more than before. You look at one thing and you say “no” to people when you get that call.
“Remember, as we look at the clues, there is another big one, which is that Conor not only canceled the Irish press conference, he canceled every media outlet that was ever accepted before this competition, which I think makes it very possible that our Irish star will start to come into focus.
If McGregor manages to fight on the night, it will be his first cage appearance since he broke his leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021. While McGregor has mostly been put sidelined due to his recovery and rehabilitation, his erratic behavior outside the cage has given rise to speculation that he is not in ideal conditions to return to action.
Cormier can’t help but worry that the cancellation of the press conference is a sign of bigger problems.
“Let me be your friend and I tell you, start preparing yourself a little bit for disappointment,” Cormier said. “I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but let me tell you about the UFC. From now on, Dana White will argue and shout against the media. Dana White is going to give the media a hard time. Dana White has no problem letting go of the media. You know who Dana White doesn’t like to let down? The fans. Doesn’t like to disappoint fans. And when the press conference was canceled, you saw people on Twitter, people on Instagram, talking about their trip, being ready to go watch, go to Dublin to watch a reporter. It’s a disappointment.
“Dana White doesn’t like to let them down either and he tries to over-deliver to the fans. So, to me, I feel like it’s a big deal. Look, I’ve contacted many people in the organization to try to find out what happened, and when everyone is being quiet like they are right now, that tells me it’s a bit worrying.
Sonnen took the speculation a step further, saying McGregor’s absence could be linked to a new round of contract negotiations for the former two-division champion. Even given a significant decline in activity in recent years, McGregor remains MMA’s biggest box office hit by far.
Could the recent drama indirectly provide the public with a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes discussions?
“When they announced that they were going to Ireland to do the press conference, it was on the heels of an announcement made two days before by Conor McGregor who said: ‘I have two fights left on my contract and we are renegotiating,’” Sonnen said. “The reason it was interesting is that it’s usually done when there’s still a fight left. Conor has had several renegotiations during his own career, he always did it when there was one fight left. But two days later, it was announced that they would be leaving for Ireland, which would be every fighter’s dream. A sold-out press conference, you get all the fun, all the excitement, all the attention, and by the way, you don’t have to pull any punches. It would have just been a really good time.
“Just like Dana White’s good faith in letting Conor know, ‘I’m still promoting you.’ I’m still going to help you grow and you’re going to have great experiences?’ Or was it more likely that they had an almost verbal type of agreement where things really fell into place, and I’m telling you this because when that was canceled, what does that mean in the long run? term ?
Cormier doubled down on the idea that McGregor’s behavior could be a bad sign for his competitive future, using his own career as an example. At his peak, Cormier was also a two-division champion, having won belts at heavyweight and light heavyweight, his move to MMA following a highly successful run in amateur wrestling.
When Cormier was young and hungry, he did everything to get to his fights; However, at the height of his success, he admits he didn’t hesitate to use the influence he had to compete under ideal circumstances. Specifically, he remembers pulling out of a fight with Anthony Johnson at UFC 206 due to injury, and he thinks McGregor might also be done taking unnecessary risks with his body.
“You know who doesn’t need the Conor McGregor fight? Conor McGregor,” Cormier said. “He’s the only one in this whole equation who doesn’t need it.” And when you don’t need it, sometimes motivations change. …Again, I’m just giving you thoughts from a fighter’s perspective, audience. I just don’t know what plays into that because I know that when I was fighting, those fights before I became “the man”, I would do anything to get there. But when I was the man and I didn’t really need it, I got the door, the only time I had it, and I took it, and I waited another five month. I’m happier fighting this fight in April than in November and so I took that as an option.
“Conor is not the champion, but when we talk about Conor McGregor, he is on a completely different planet than everyone else. From money to fame to expectations. The belt, for Conor McGregor, n Wins and losses, when it comes to Conor McGregor, don’t matter. So we’re talking about a level where we don’t need anything good. bigger than anything we’ve ever seen before.”
Later in their show, Cormier and Sonnen reacted live when McGregor released a statement apologizing for the cancellation. McGregor did not specify why he was unable to attend the press conference (he wrote: “today’s press conference has been canceled due to a series of obstacles beyond our control “), Sonnen is therefore still convinced that any explanation is possible at this stage.
“Look, there’s something going on here,” Sonnen said. “You are dealing with one of the greatest magicians of all time, one of the greatest entertainers. You’re always looking at this hand, so you don’t see what this hand is doing. I don’t know what Conor is doing and, frankly, maybe it’s not that sneaky. Maybe something happened and he said, “Look, we need to start doing this.”
“But I’m curious and I think whatever it is, he’s going to make a spectacle out of it, he’s going to make a spectacle out of it, I think it’s going to end up being a lot of fun.”