UFC superstar Conor McGregor has had a meteoric rise to the top of the sport of MMA. After just two fights in the UFC, he headlined the promotion's fastest-selling event in history. Now, with just three fights under the UFC banner, the Notorious is already on the cusp of a title shot. However, the UFC almost lost their Irish trash-talking maestro before they even had him.
In a candid interview with Setanta, McGregor revealed how he almost quit the sport before the UFC came knocking on his door.
We got some bad news about a teammate of mine that couldn't compete anymore. So you know what, I was thinking, fuck this game. I don't want to do this shit anymore. What if I'm going to do this then something happens and I can't do it no more?
So I had packed it in again. I packed it in again but it was only a couple of weeks. I didn't show up training. I didn't show up to do classes, I used to teach the boxing every Tuesday at seven o'clock and John [Kavanagh] was away at Iceland at the time or away in America somewhere teaching. So, I hadn't been there in a couple of weeks.
Then the phone rang one night when I was about to go out with my friends. It was John and I didn't answer it. I wouldn't answer it because he's going to give out to me because I haven't been teaching the classes. I haven't been showing up.
McGregor held both the lightweight and featherweight Cage Warriors belts at the time. It's incredible to think that someone who had climbed to the zenith of European MMA lost his motivation to continue in the sport. Luckily, SBG coach John Kavanagh was stubborn.
And then it rang and it rang and it rang. I was like 'nah, fuck it. I'm not going back. No. I'll figure something else to do.'
It kept ringing so I answered it. 'How do you feel about making your UFC debut in nine weeks?' And then that was that. I put the phone down and I went home and then I showed up at the gym the next day and put the work in.
Conor McGregor, one of the most recognisable faces in MMA, an athlete that is arguably bigger than the sport in his own country, nearly quit the game before the wider world got to see his talents. That phone call couldn't have been more perfectly timed.
Check out the full interview below.
