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Self belief is a tricky concept. To doubt is to be human. Even the finest sports stars feel the weight of self doubt. Roy Keane admitted his intense work ethic was driven by the fear of failure and the possibility he might not be good enough. To discover true self confidence, to find someone who has seemingly undergone an exorcism of self-doubt, can be a remarkable experience.
For Conor McGregor, Ireland’s fastest rising sports star, and a Dubliner causing substantial ripples in the world of mixed martial arts, not only is that level of self belief attained, it is barely containable.
Despite a serious knee injury which effectively left him fighting half the fight on one leg, on August 17th in Boston, the man from Crumlin earned his second Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) win, and the fourteenth of his sixteen fight career. With the win over Max Holloway, the quick witted and sharp dressing McGregor went a long way to dismissing ideas that the growing hype around him in the United States, is a superficial construct based more on his pre-fight charisma than his credentials as a genuine power inside the octagon (or cage). He was welcomed to the ring with the fanfare of an established champion, and left with his reputation only enhanced.
During the fight McGregor suffered a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), MCL (medial collateral ligament) strain and posterior horn meniscus tear. A torn ACL alone is enough to make most athletes scream in agony, as they lie prone on the ground. McGregor reacted by returning to the octagon and merely adjusted his fighting style. The injury has required surgery and will keep him on the sidelines for up to ten months, but when his knee was damaged mid-fight he opted not to tell his corner.
"I’m ready to die in there"
Speaking with Newstalk Sport Saturday shortly after the fight, he said: “I didn’t want to bring it up, you know, I felt like it wasn’t an issue.
“You’re in there until the end. Honestly, I’m ready to die in there, you know? I’m going until the end. There’s no quit there.”
McGregor’s focus and dedication to his goal that night against Holloway—and his ability to continue unflinchingly through a serious injury—are just another example of the character that has endeared him to fans on both sides of the Atlantic.
The featherweight McGregor—these days almost invariably decked out in tailored suits, which he has complimented with a smart wooden cane since his injury—speaks with a controlled, sharp wit and an inspiring assuredness. Sit with the man from Crumlin for more than the briefest moments and you might feel like you can run through walls.
Before the August fight in Boston, McGregor, despite his fight being down the bill of the night’s entertainment, was given a prominent position in the pre-fight promotion. If there were any concerns that he might be cowed by the more established names, or the increased media glare, McGregor dispelled them with one of the most memorable quotes of the year, as he told the American press, “There’s two things I really like to do, and that’s whoop ass and look good. I’m doing one of them right now and on Saturday night I’m gonna do the other.”
For Conor McGregor there is no plausible reason why he won’t be one of the world’s most well known, and feared, mixed martial arts fighters in the coming years—serious knee injury or not. And when he says it, it’s difficult to resist the temptation to believe it.
When McGregor sat down with Off the Ball before the fight his presence electrified the studio.
His answers were an enrapturing mix of intelligence and humour; of bravado cut with sharp wit. In a sea of polished-to-the-point-of-blandness sports personalities, the honest, open and charming McGregor is a welcome relief.
This unfaltering confidence is rooted in his obsessive approach to his work. Calling it work, however, is to miss the point. For McGregor, success in the octagon is his life’s mission and there’s little room for anything else.
Recognising the distinction that separates champions from also-rans, he adheres to an unimpeachable work ethic closer associated with obsession than dedication. McGregor finds his edge within the details; he trains with rigourous dedication and carries that mental attitude out of the gym door and with him throughout the day.
Obsession
“It’s a 24-hour thing in my head, and must be like that—it must be an obsession,” he says.
“There is no such thing as talent, it’s whoever shows up the most. If you look back at No. 1’s training schedule and then you back look at No. 2’s training schedule over the course of a year, you better believe number one has worked just that little bit harder.
“I have put hours upon hours upon hours upon years into this game,” he adds.
When he isn’t at the gym he’s mentally reliving his work, identifying potential improvements. Each night he jots down ways he can improve, visualising a victorious resolution to problems.
“I go home and write notes, I take notes down of what I’ve done during that day.It is visualisation. I’m literally sitting in my room with my eyes closed, picturing these movements, and I write it down.
“It’s all in your head. If you can convince yourself that you are what you say you are, and really believe in it and really believe in what you’re doing, then over time that is what’s going to happen.”
When McGregor says it, you find you start to believe it.
This article originally appeared in Newstalk Magazine for iPad in September, for more details go here.
