Witnessing BJ Penn’s career being ground into dust at the hands of Frankie Edgar back at The Ultimate Fighter 19 Finale was one of the saddest moments I’ve experienced as a fan of mixed martial arts; or as a sports fan in general for that matter. It wasn’t just that he lost, or even that he was beaten up badly (Penn finished his career an unassuming 16-10-2, and his two previous fights were also disturbingly lopsided losses).
It was the fact that, finally, there were no more excuses left for Penn. His opponent wasn’t bigger, he didn’t get robbed on the scorecards. He didn’t fail to take advantage of that desire that was supposedly still burning somewhere inside him, and any embers that there might have been left were smoldered into ash with each elbow Edgar rained down on his increasingly mutilated visage.
By the time referee Herb Dean mercifully called the bout, we all knew we had just witnessed the dispiriting end of the career of mixed martial arts’ biggest lightweight star. But from those ashes a potential savior is ready to arise and claim the now officially abdicated throne as the face of the UFC’s lighter weight divisions.
After a near year-long layoff due to knee injuries, “The Notorious” Conor McGregor makes his highly anticipated return this Saturday when UFC Fight Night Dublin emanates from his native country of Ireland.
McGregor is currently the #13 ranked contender according to the UFC’s official featherweight rankings, but from where he’s standing that’s a slight on the media rather than his pugilistic prowess. And he’s been sure to let that be known. Despite being only 2-0 inside the Octagon, McGregor has garnered as much notoriety as anyone else in the UFC’s sub-170 weight classes up to and including champions such as Anthoy Pettis and Jose Aldo.
The Irishman has managed to accomplish this through a unique blend of boisterous boasting, slick fashion sense, and, with the power of an entire nation behind him, backing up everything he’s ever said so far. And than there’s the it factor.
Oh, that “itfactor.” The nebulous concept that you can’t quite put into words beyond “you know it when you see it.” That intrinsic aura some people radiate that commands your undivided attention in way others simply just can’t.
McGregor has it, and he has it in spades. When highly ranked featherweights Cub Swanson and Jeremy Stephens were fighting in a potential number-one contender’s matchup a few weeks ago, MMA fans failed to muster more than a collective shrug and a “good job Cub.” For this Saturday’s main event, a fight taking place between McGregor and Diego Brandao, an unranked, injury-replacement opponent coming off a loss, fans are abuzz for what the potential results could indicate.
Like any great athletethat isn’t afraid to say what’s on his mind, McGregor is a polarizing figure in the sport. For every fan that’s hanging on each word coming out of his mouth, there’s another hoping that mouth is shut by Brandao.
What side you are on doesn’t matter, what matters is that you’ve taken a side. That’s just not something you can say with most fighters in the UFC these days, regardless of weight class.
BJ Penn secured his place in the pantheon of MMA greats the same way. While we take the fact that he beat Matt Hughes at a time when he was running roughshod over the welterweight division for granted in hindsight, Penn’s claims before the fight were at the very least the same level of braggadocio as McGregor’s now.
If McGregor can back up his proclamations in the cage in Dublin, he’ll be one step closer to proving he’s as great as he says he is.
Maybe we’ll look back on McGregor in the coming years, his career coated in gold, and claim that we always knew he would be a champion. Or maybe he’ll be another also-ran, one of the countless prospects who simply couldn’t live up to the expectations they set for themselves.
Either way, you can be sure as hell we’ll be along for the ride, enjoying every second while it lasts.
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