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The Conor McGregor thread 2.0


David

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I just don’t get what the obsession is with forcing him into these title fights. Just feels so unnecessary at this point. There’s still so many huge fights you can make with Conor McGregor. The fourth instalment of the Dustin Poirier series is the obvious one. The rubber match with Nate Diaz is another biggie. If Gaethje loses to Oliveira then McGregor vs Gaethje would be ace. There’s Tony Ferguson. Even that RDA fight that we were supposed to see in 2016. And I know they’re a few divisions apart now but you can always do McGregor vs Aldo 2. If he insists on 170 then you could sling him in with Masvidal or Covington. A Robbie Lawler fight could be fun as well. Why does he have to be in the title mix all the time? Why do they insist on shoehorning him in and muddying the title picture when he’s the main guy on the roster who really doesn’t need belts at this point in his career to create interest or get people to buy his PPVs? 

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Conor will get serious ppv buys regardless, but Conor in a title fight and potentially becoming champ and head of the division will always attract more buys, exposure, clicks and soundbites. Its as simple as that. 

How Dana kept a straight face when he spouted all that shite was incredible. 

Even top boot licker Brett Okamoto called it out. 

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9 minutes ago, Silky Kisser said:

Conor will get serious ppv buys regardless, but Conor in a title fight and potentially becoming champ and head of the division will always attract more buys, exposure, clicks and soundbites. Its as simple as that.

Would it make a huge difference though? I doubt the Poirier fights last year would’ve done significantly better on PPV if they were title fights. I think people just pay for the fights that grab them more than anything, and people obviously get invested in McGregor’s fights whether they’re rooting for or against him. I don’t think belts make much difference in his case but maybe I’m wrong. My thinking is that the UFC keep pushing for it because it’s what McGregor wants and of course they wanna keep him fighting. It is all complete bollocks though. I saw Okamoto’s comments and was pleasantly surprised. Thought he’d be brown nosing to secure all those future Dana and McGregor interviews but fair play on this occasion, I guess.

Thing is, even if him being champ again would generate more buys, money, exposure etc, he’s clearly way past the point where he’s gonna go on some proper title reign. That day is gone. It’s probably gonna last one fight tops. Even if he were to catch Oliveira early doors and put him away and become champ, he’s not going on some run through Makhachev, Gaethje, Dariush and so on so they’re really just pushing for him to get beat again. I think it’s actually short sighted. If the aim is to maximise the financial benefits that come with McGregor fighting, why keep forcing a situation where he’s continually gonna be thrown in with the division’s current elite level guys? Surely you keep him around longer by just making big name fun fights with Nate etc? Then if he wins a couple and looks good, then maybe start talking about the top ranked guys and titles and stuff again. But to just keep sending him out with champs and top contenders is probably gonna keep ending in tears and will ultimately just create a quicker trip into retirement for him. 

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Dana's probably figuring if he somehow beats Oliveira, which isn't outside the realms of possibility if he comes in with his head on straight, then it sets up a great rivalry fight with "Khabib's guy" in Islam Makhachev. 

Odds are that Oliveira would just school him, but you never know. In a stand up battle he always has a chance, especially early doors.

Edited by David
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4 minutes ago, David said:

Dana's probably figuring if he somehow beats Oliveira, which isn't outside the realms of possibility if he comes in with his head on straight, then it sets up a great rivalry fight with "Khabib's guy" in Islam Makhachev. 

Can you imagine the breakdown Conor would have if he finally got the belt back (which would already be only because Khabib’s not fighting anymore), then Makhachev schools him in his first defence, while Khabib watches on in the corner? 

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I wonder if ESPN / businesses in Vegas put any pressure on Dana about PPV headliners.

As far as I was aware, the beauty of UFC's deal with ESPN is that they get a flat fee for the exclusive PPV rights and it doesnt move up or down depending on the performance of each individual event. People have speculated that this is why Dana has been reluctant to shell out the money to put together things like Jones v Ngannou. Although it would be a bigger event, it wouldnt mean as much to UFC's bottom line as it would have in the old days if Lewis v Gane is going to get them the same cheque regardless.

That said, the difference between 500k and >1m PPV buys is obviously enormous financially. I could totally see why ESPN would want McGregor in the biggest fights possible. 

Similarly, I have to imagine a McGregor title fight at the T-Mobile is going to be phenomenal for the hotels, bars, restaurants, casinos etc. 

Personally I would rather see how 155 played out with the likes of Makachev, Dariush, Oliveira, Gaethje etc. If we must keep promoting big McGregor main events then just give him winnable fights on the same level as the Cerrone fights to keep the suits and the casuals happy.

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45 minutes ago, Ironic Indie Lad said:

Personally I would rather see how 155 played out with the likes of Makachev, Dariush, Oliveira, Gaethje etc. If we must keep promoting big McGregor main events then just give him winnable fights on the same level as the Cerrone fights to keep the suits and the casuals happy.

This is pretty much it, and wand's point earlier too: at this point, titles aren't going to make a difference to McG's draw rate. He's built up a massive, self-sustaining cult of personality that will guarantee a draw to almost anything he does in life now. They could announce the return of fucking Eldorado and it'd be a hit if people knew he was in it.

Robbie Lawler would be a good fight (to be fair, Robbie Lawler is a good match-up for most), but in the top 10, the only guys I'm interested in seeing face McG (if I just wanted to see him have a hard night, which is the only reason for me to watch him now) are Gaethje and Chandler - maybe RDA, so he gets the payday he deserved. Outside the top 10, I'd like to see him in either fun matches, or as a gatekeeper test to Fiziev, Gillespie, or Gamrot.

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I feel like I'm coming off as a McGregor sympathiser here, fuck me I hope not, but there has to be a reason why Dana is continually trying to smash the square peg into the round hole. Maybe it is simply a case of wanting to keep him sweet, but I firmly believe business is better for the UFC if he's on top.

Excuse the wrestling analogy and it probably doesn't fit great here, but Austin, Hogan and the Rock were bona-fide Superstars who didn't need a belt, but for the majority of the time they'd be in the title matches because that's where the money, interest and the super mainstream exposure is. 

We're too far in the bubble on here, but for the majority of casuals with a slight interest, Conor is MMA, and getting the casuals onside is big business. 

Oh yeah, fuck McGregor. 

 

Edited by Silky Kisser
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37 minutes ago, Silky Kisser said:

I feel like I'm coming off as a McGregor sympathiser here, fuck me I hope not, but there has to be a reason why Dana is continually trying to smash the square peg into the round hole. Maybe it is simply a case of wanting to keep him sweet, but I firmly believe business is better for the UFC if he's on top.

Excuse the wrestling analogy and it probably doesn't fit great here, but Austin, Hogan and the Rock were bona-fide Superstars who didn't need a belt, but for the majority of the time they'd be in the title matches because that's where the money, interest and the super mainstream exposure is. 

We're too far in the bubble on here, but for the majority of casuals with a slight interest, Conor is MMA, and getting the casuals onside is big business. 

Oh yeah, fuck McGregor. 

 

I don't think anyone here disagrees with the logic, you're definitely on point. But, like how in wrestling "over" and "winning" aren't the same thing, I think a fair argument could be made that, if the UFC really want to get the best out of McG without messing up their championship division (and, coincidentally, potentially killing their cash cow when he gets beaten by all those killers) to do so, their best option would be to set him up with fun bouts in the main event of whatever card he's on. He doesn't need the belt, and, unlike in wrestling, there's no real way to mitigate the damage done to his drawing power if he loses - he can't be booked to "get his win back", and no promo he cuts will be convincing to even get him a rematch, if he gets absolutely obliterated by Makhachev.

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I feel like if you keep him in the title fights, he either wins which is great for them, or he seemingly loses to the best and its easier to stomach and control the narrative. If he starts mucking about with your Gregor Gillespies and loses, then you've just stuck a pin in the balloon and there ain't no coming back from that to your average fan. 

 

Edited by Silky Kisser
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He's 100% good for the UFC's business. I don't think anyone can deny that. He has been linked to so much bad press over the years and it doesn't seem to have made a dent in his drawing power. I think the Cowboy fight was around 1 million buys and then both the Poirier fights were well north of that number too.

The site fees, live gates, media coverage and impact to the local economy is at a level so far above fighters a tier down in terms of star power (Jones, Diaz, Masvidal etc.)

Personally, If I was promoting him I would imagine I could get more fights and more money out of him over a longer term if it was away from title contention at 155 and 170. I'm talking about the likes of Diaz, Lawler, Ferguson, Masvidal, Chandler. Guys with name value who are past their best days (being fair, Conor fits that description at this stage). To me those are still marketable fights but ones he actually has a chance of winning. Surely that's better than him getting absolutely ruined by the likes of Makachev and Usman?

Who knows though. He doesnt fight often and he obviously doesnt need the money. Maybe its best to just get him in the biggest fights possible while you can and hope his opponent gets a bit of a rub off his star power. 

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6 minutes ago, Silky Kisser said:

I feel like if you keep him in the title fights, he either wins which is great for them, or he seemingly loses to the best and its easier to stomach and control the narrative. If he starts mucking about with your Gregor Gillespies and loses, then you've just stuck a pin in the balloon and there ain't no coming back from that to your average fan. 

 

That's true. To clarify, the gatekeeper role would be my second choice - my first choice would be as I mentioned above, and IIR says much better below:

3 minutes ago, Ironic Indie Lad said:

Personally, If I was promoting him I would imagine I could get more fights and more money out of him over a longer term if it was away from title contention at 155 and 170. I'm talking about the likes of Diaz, Lawler, Ferguson, Masvidal, Chandler. Guys with name value who are past their best days (being fair, Conor fits that description at this stage). To me those are still marketable fights but ones he actually has a chance of winning. Surely that's better than him getting absolutely ruined by the likes of Makachev and Usman?

 

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I don't disagree with you lads, but you only have to read Conors tweets and comments to know he ain't about the fun fights. In his head he's still champ material and that's all that seemingly matters to him. All the generational wealth anyone could possibly need, but he'll never be happy unless he can consider himself top dog.

Again, it's not what I want, just trying to get my head around it all. 

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Nah, I think you're right in this regard, and that's definitely the sticking point: as long as McG has the power to get what he wants, we'll only get what he wants.

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