Childhood & Early Life
Conor McGregor was born on July 14, 1988, in Crumlin, Dublin, to Tony and Margaret McGregor. He has two sisters—Erin and Aoife.
When Conor was 12, he began training in boxing at ‘Crumlin Boxing Club’ under Phil Sutcliffe. During this period, he developed a passion for football as well and played for a local club.
He received primary and secondary education at a ‘Gaelscoil’ and ‘Gaelcholáiste’ respectively. Around the same time, he developed a passion for football and played association football in Tallaght. In his youth, he played for ‘Lourdes Celtic Football Club.’
When he was 18, his family moved to Lucan, Dublin, where he attended an Irish-speaking school. Here he met future ‘UFC’ fighter Tom Egan, and they started training in mixed martial arts (MMA).
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Career
On February 17, 2007, Conor McGregor made his debut in MMA for the ‘Irish Ring of Truth’ in Dublin. It was an amateur fight against Kieran Campbell in which McGregor emerged victorious. Following his victory, he was signed by the ‘Irish Cage of Truth.’
The following year, he started training under John Kavanagh at the ‘Straight Blast Gym.’ He is left-handed and fights out of the southpaw stance, but uses conventional stances as well.
On March 9, 2008, he fought his first professional MMA bout, where he won against Gary Morris. Next, he won against Mo Taylor.
Although he lost his featherweight debut against Artemij Sitenkov, he won his next featherweight fight against Stephen Bailey. He also won his next fight against Connor Dillon, after which he moved back to lightweight and fought against Joseph Duffy, but lost the fight.
Between 2011 and 2012, he won both the ‘CWFC’ featherweight and lightweight championships, becoming the first European professional MMA to hold titles in two divisions simultaneously.
In February 2013, ‘UFC’ signed Conor in a multi-fight contract. On April 6, 2013, he made his ‘UFC’ debut against Marcus Brimage. He won the bout, which earned him his first ‘Knockout of the Night’ award.
At UFC Fight Night 26, Conor McGregor fought against Max Holloway, and was victorious. During his fight with Holloway, Conor tore his anterior cruciate ligament, which required surgery. He was out of action for about ten months.
After his recovery, at UFC Fight Night 46 on July 19, 2014, he faced Diego Brandão in Dublin. He won the bout, and earned his first ‘Performance of the Night’ award.
On September 27, 2014, after Conor signed a second multi-fight contract with ‘UFC,’ he faced Dustin Poirier at ‘UFC 178,’ and won the fight. It was Poirier's first ‘UFC’ loss, and Conor earned his second ‘Performance of the Night’ award.
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On January 18, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 59, he faced Dennis Siver and won the fight. About 13,828 people attended the bout. This victory earned Conor his third ‘Performance of the Night’ award.
Now Conor was expected to face Aldo at ‘UFC 189’ for ‘UFC Featherweight Championship.’ ‘UFC’ spent huge amount of money promoting the Aldo-McGregor fight. But suddenly, it was reported that Aldo had suffered a rib fracture and had pulled out of the fight. Conor was rescheduled to face Chad Mendes for the ‘Interim Featherweight Championship.’
Conor and Mendes faced each other in front of a record 16,019 spectators. It was another victory for Conor, and he won his fourth ‘Performance of the Night’ award.
Conor finally faced Aldo at ‘UFC 194’ on December 12, 2015, in Las Vegas in front of a record-breaking number of spectators. The event broke all previous records for a MMA event in the US. The fight was over in a very short time and was declared the fastest finish in any ‘UFC’ bout. Conor became the second undisputed ‘UFC Featherweight Champion’ in history. He also won his fifth ‘Performance of the Night’ award.
Next Conor McGregor was supposed to face Rafael dos Anjos for the ‘UFC Lightweight Championship.’ But dos Anjos withdrew from the fight after breaking his foot. Many competitors were asked to step-in to face Conor. Finally, former ‘UFC Lightweight Championship’ challenger Nate Diaz agreed to face Conor.
The bout began with Conor shifting stances, before establishing his signature left cross. He showcased a variety of kicks, but was forced to the cage by Diaz. Conor landed 28 to Diaz's 23 strikes. During the fight, Diaz wobbled Conor on several occasions. Finally, Conor gave in to the submission hold. It was Conor’s first loss in the ‘UFC,’ and his third overall. Both were awarded ‘Fight of the Night’ bonuses, and Conor received the highest purse for any fighter in the history of the company, a total of $1,000,000.
A rematch with Diaz took place in August 2016. The bout was contested at welterweight at ‘UFC 202.’ Conor won the rematch, and was awarded ‘Fight of the Night’ honors. On November 12, 2016, at ‘UFC 205,’ Conor won against Eddie Alvarez.
After winning the ‘Lightweight Championship’ at ‘UFC 205,’ Conor took time off from ‘UFC,’ as the birth of his first child was due in May 2017. He also wanted to campaign for a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather in August 2017.
Due to inactivity, Conor was stripped of his ‘Lightweight Championship’ after the conclusion of ‘UFC 223’ on 7 April.
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It was announced on 3 August that Conor would return to the Octagon at ‘UFC 229’ on 6 October to challenge Khabib Nurmagomedov for the ‘UFC Lightweight Championship’ in Las Vegas. Conor McGregor lost the fight in the fourth round via a submission.
