McGregor’s rise continues

He may not be well-known in Ireland, but Conor McGregor is making plenty of new friends in America.

On Saturday night he won his second fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, delighting more than 12,500 at Boston’s TD Garden.

Afterwards, the Dubliner was congratulated in his dressing room by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and boxing star Oscar De La Hoya.

“It’s surreal, such a blur,” said McGregor, who recorded his mixed martial arts victory with a points decision over Hawaii’s Max Holloway.

The 25-year-old McGregor is still in the early stages of his UFC career but he is being promoted as a future champion and that can be lucrative. The UFC organisation has an annual revenue of $600m (€450m) and its top fighters can earn up to $5m (€3.75m) per fight.

Despite McGregor not being in the main event, he generated more publicity than any of the 25 other fighters. In the week leading up to his bout, the UFC provided him with his own media day at a Boston gym and a fan contest was held to design a Conor McGregor poster, with the winning entry receiving $2,500 (€1,875). Such hype for a fighter having only his second UFC fight is rare, but McGregor didn’t feel burdened by it.

“If you can’t handle pressure then you’re mid-level,” he said. “Learning to handle the media is just like learning another discipline for me.”

So far McGregor seems to be handling his opposition as easily as the media. From the opening bell in the featherweight (10st 5lbs) contest McGregor imposed his will on Holloway, forcing his opponent into retreat via an array of sharp kicks and punches. Holloway was unable to mount much offence and ended the round with a bloody nose and swollen eye.

McGregor had to change tactics in the second round after suffering a knee injury and instead kept the fight on the ground, using his grappling skills to keep in control. The pattern continued into the third and final round, as McGregor stayed on top of Holloway, landing several punches.

The noisy crowd, of which green shirts and tricolours were prominent, roared its approval as McGregor was announced the winner via scores of 30-27 (twice) and 30-26 from the three judges.

“I wanted to finish the fight [inside the distance] but that’s combat. You have to improvise,” said McGregor who finished the 15-minute fight without a mark on his face.

Saturday’s event was available to 93m US homes on the Fox network and was screened by Setanta in Ireland. “To get the show over to Ireland is a goal of mine,” he said. He’ll likely get his chance later next year.