Conor McGregor right to have an axe to grind with UFC fans – sleep on him at your peril

Conor McGregor has been unusually quiet in the build-up to his highly anticipated UFC return against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone on January 18.

Normally “The Notorious” is running his mouth on any medium he can find, driving up interest and pay-per-view buys, putting down his opponent at every opportunity, and creating new sound bites for his army of fans to lap up.

This time it’s been a little bit different.

The former featherweight and lightweight champion finally broke his silence this week, giving his first media interview – to The Mac Life, his in-house channel – since the fight was announced. And he clearly has an axe to grind.

“A lot of people forget about my skill base,” he said. “I’m gonna go in there and remind them.

“I don’t feel these people are on my level when I am committed. I have not been committed for a while, up until about a year ago. I started really committing myself. I look forward to coming back and showcasing my skills to the people.”

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That can only be bad news for “Cowboy”, but the veteran 36-year-old American (36-13, 1 no contest) is under no illusions.

“I expect the best Conor you guys have ever seen. I really do,” Cerrrone told MMAFighting.com. “He has so many doubters and questions that he needs to answer. I think he’s training extra hard, he’s coming and I think he’s going to be the best Conor you have ever seen.”

McGregor has not fought since an infamous October 2018 submission defeat by UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, a fight so heated it spilled outside the Octaton.

He put the loss down to a “horrendous” training camp, blaming himself for not having the right attitude, but says he has now made “corrections”.

“I’m very well prepared, my team has been phenomenal,” McGregor said. “I just feel good to be in this spot I’m in, I can focus on my skills, my strength, my endurance, build myself back up.

“That’s what allowed me to achieve what I achieved, the dual way championship. It was consistency, consecutive bouts, back to back. That’s what I’m looking to replicate again.”

Indeed, McGregor’s meteoric rise in the UFC seems a long time ago; tearing through the 145-pounds division at will; that 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo to become the undisputed featherweight king in 2015; the masterclass against Eddie Alvarez to become the “champ champ” almost a year later, after avenging his loss at 170 pounds to Nate Diaz.

In an interview with the Post last week, his manager Audie Attar admitted the mega-money boxing match against Floyd Mayweather brought “distractions”, which still seemed to be there in that loss to Khabib.

But now the focus seems restored – and that should be exciting for all MMA fans, and concerning for the lightweight and welterweight rosters.

“I want gold, and silverware, because that bad [expletive] belt is a silver one,” McGregor told The Mac Life, referencing the “BMF” championship held by Jorge Masvidal.

“It’s not the best looking belt. I’m after the gold at 155, 170, they’re the belts I’m chasing now.”

Don’t put it past him. “I’m really excited because I haven’t seen this in a couple of years,” Attar told the Post. “Just sit back and you’ll see a performance of an old Conor.”

That will be music to Dana White’s ears. The UFC president said 2019 was “the biggest year in the company’s history” – but throw three McGregor fights into the mix for 2020 and they should conceivably enjoy a big increase on those financial figures.

The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas reportedly sold out in five minutes, and it’s the fourth time in his career McGregor has commanded a gate of more than US$10 million.

So he’s maybe right to be annoyed that people are overlooking the return of the Mac. McGregor is still easily the biggest draw in the sport and, with his renewed focus, MMA could be in for another big mainstream boom period.