Conor McGregor, Donald Cerrone saving drama for Saturday

There were no water bottles or energy drinks thrown. Compliments outpaced oral jabs, and the few attempted zingers were met with mutual laughs and friendly nods of acceptance.

It was far from a normal Conor McGregor news conference when the Irishman took the stage Wednesday night at the Palms with Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone to kick off fight week.

McGregor said fans will have to wait for the welterweight main event of UFC 246 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena for the sparks to fly.

“It’s hard not to respect Donald, so there will be no bad blood here,” McGregor said. “But there will be blood spilled on Saturday night. Make no mistake about that. That’s the beautiful business we’re in. I’m happy with that, and I’m in a good spot. We’re focusing on the skills here. It’s going to be an exciting bout for the fans with a lot of attacks and a lot of drama in the cage. I’m very eager to get going.”

McGregor, a former featherweight and lightweight champion, will be fighting in an MMA bout for the first time since October 2018 and looking for his first win since 2016.

He has used the time to compete in one of the biggest boxing bouts in history against Floyd Mayweather while also dealing with legal issues outside the cage.

A reporter asked McGregor about those issues, including two sexual assault allegations believed to be under investigation, only to be booed and shouted down by the almost 2,000 fans in attendance.

Cerrone also ran cover by yelling at the media to stay on topic.

It was by far the most dramatic exchange of the night.

Cerrone went so far as to express his appreciation to McGregor for agreeing to the fight.

“It’s cool to finally get what I deserve,” Cerrone said of the big payday that comes with sharing the cage with McGregor. “So thank you, Conor. And you’re right, you do bring the biggest paydays. You do bring the most eyes.

“I can’t (expletive) wait for Saturday night.”

McGregor is similarly excited for his return to competition. There was a time during his legal battles when questions surfaced about whether he would be allowed to work in the United States again.

“I’m very, very grateful and really just honored to be back on U.S. soil and back here in Las Vegas,” he said, coming as close to addressing his transgressions as he would get during the 30-minute event. “I’ve had so many amazing moments here. My life has changed here in America. I’m very grateful for this country and honored to perform for the people. I’m a fighter and an entertainer, and to come here and entertain people is something that gets me up in the morning. I’m very happy.”

The 31-year-old didn’t feel the need to try to put on a show Wednesday despite the news conference taking place in prime time for East Coast viewers.

McGregor and Cerrone have engaged in memorable exchanges onstage in the past, leading to lofty expectations for what could happen just days before they step in the cage together. While McGregor conceded the news conference probably would have gone much differently had this fight been booked several years ago, he wasn’t going to force drama with a fighter he has grown to respect.

“I am as real as it gets, like the company slogan,” McGregor said. “I react to the situation as it is. The situations happened a different way for some time. This situation seems to be a little bit different, so I react accordingly. There’s nothing false, nothing fake. This is just me being real, and that’s it.”

After an exchange between the pair about McGregor’s admiration of Cerrone’s python-skin jacket, Cerrone predicted the assembled media would gripe about the lack of fireworks.

“We’re just professionals,” he said. “Why can’t Conor come here and hold himself like this? This is (expletive) amazing. Are you kidding me? You guys aren’t getting the clickbait and all the (expletive) you all want, but as a man, my hat’s off to the son of a bitch sitting here.”

Note

Herb Dean was tabbed by the Nevada Athletic Commission to serve as the referee for the fight on Saturday night.

He was also the referee in McGregor’s last fight, a loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018.

Judges Sal D’Amato, Chris Lee and Derek Cleary have also been assigned to the bout.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.