Conor McGregor handles his first UFC loss with grace
Ultimate Fighting Championship star Conor McGregor may not have done a very good job defending the choke during a submission loss to Nate Diaz in the main event of UFC 196 on Saturday night, but he did show an ability to handle his first defeat in the organization.
McGregor, one of the most braggadocious fighters the sport has seen, was gracious after the loss.
“I’m simply heartbroken and that’s it,” he said at the news conference. “I’ll pick myself up and we’ll figure it out in the morning.”
The featherweight champion moved up to welterweight, a 25-pound difference, to take the bout against Diaz after lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos had pulled out of a scheduled title defense against McGregor.
A day after the defeat, the Irish star took to Facebook to share his reflections on the defeat.
While he admits he was humbled, McGregor promised his fans he wouldn’t change.
“I stormed in and put it all on the line. I took a shot and missed. I will never apologize for taking a shot. (Expletive) happens. I’ll take this loss like a man. I will not shy away from it. I will not change who I am. If another champion goes up two weights, let me know,” McGregor posted. “If (you’re) tired of me talking money, take a nap. I’ll still be here when you wake up with the highest PPV and the gate.”
McGregor had won 15 consecutive fights, including seven in a row since signing with the UFC.
All three of his career losses have now come by submission, with his last previous defeat coming in November 2010.
“Thank you to the true support and (expletive) the hate that came out of the woodwork. I love it all. It’s still steak for breakfast,” he posted. “I’ve been here many times in my life in some form or another. I’ll eat it all and come back stronger.”
He did save some sharp words for a few of his fellow fighters. Dos Anjos and former featherweight champ Jose Aldo, who McGregor beat in 13 seconds to claim the belt in December, both posted tweets immediately after McGregor lost.
McGregor referred to both fighters with a profane word for a part of the female anatomy.
“When the history books are written, I showed up,” he wrote. “You showed up on Twitter.
“To the fans! Never ever shy away from challenges. Never run from adversity. Face yourself head on. Nate, I will see you again.”
McGregor said at the news conference his next fight would be a defense of his 145-pound belt, quite possibly at UFC 200 on July 9 at T-Mobile Arena.
Aldo and Frankie Edgar are the two leading candidates to get the title shot. McGregor isn’t happy with Aldo, who sent out a mocking tweet almost immediately after McGregor had lost. McGregor called him out for not accepting the fight Saturday on short notice and letting Diaz answer the call instead.
“(Aldo) had an opportunity to show up here and he didn’t. He could be sitting where Nate’s sitting right now. He was the first choice,” McGregor said. “He said anytime, anyplace, anywhere and it wasn’t anytime, anyplace anywhere. Now another man gets a victory over me and he celebrates it. That’s the sign of a loser. That’s the sign of a runner-up. That’s not the sign of a champion.”
UFC president Dana White said no decisions have been made on any fights for UFC 200.
Ufc lays out schedule
UFC officials took advantage of the big fight weekend to lay out the schedule for the next several months of events with a star-studded news conference at MGM Grand on Friday.
The highlight of the event was an entertaining back-and-forth trash-talking battle between light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier and former champ Jon Jones, who was stripped of the belt due to legal issues just months after defeating Cormier last year.
The will fight in the main event of UFC 197 on April 23 at MGM Grand Garden.
A date and venue was also announced for UFC 199, which will feature a middleweight title rematch between champion Luke Rockhold and former champ Chris Weidman at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., on June 4. Dominick Cruz will also defend the bantamweight title against his rival Urijah Faber on the card.
A previously announced May 14 card in Curitiba, Brazil, has been re-branded UFC 198 with a main event heavyweight title bout between Stipe Miocic and champion Fabricio Werdum.
Bad blood
There was a testy exchange during the news conference between Claudia Gadelha and women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
While the two have a history of incivility, especially after Jedrzejczyk handed Gadelha the only loss of her career in December 2014, the interaction was particularly intense.
White explained during a brief conversation with reporters at the launch party for the EA Sports UFC 2 video game launch party hours later the bad blood stems from a fight between the two on the last day of filming “The Ultimate Fighter” in Las Vegas.
“Everything shut down (and they) got into a full-blown fist fight. Nasty fight in The Ultimate Fighter gym. The show is over, the cameras were put away. The sad and scary part was very few people were left in the gym,” he said. “The last day of The Ultimate Fighter is almost like the last day of school. Everybody is signing each other’s stuff and all this other stuff.
”You noticed when they were showing each other the water bottles (during the press conference)? Joanna Jedrzejczyk hit her with a water bottle and that’s how the fight started.”
White said the animosity is prevalent throughout the season as they serve as opposing coaches.
“Wait until you see this season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ with these two,” he said. “They hate each other and the staredown in the gym was even crazy before the fight happened.”
The bout headlines an event on July 8 in Las Vegas, though the venue has not been announced. The reality show, which airs Wednesdays on Fox Sports 1, debuts on April 20.
Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj
