Conor McGregor formerly Conor Anthony McGregor (born July 14, 1988) is an Irish professional MMA fighter. He is a former featherweight and lightweight champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He is the first UFC fighter to hold UFC titles in two weight classes at the same time. He was also the featherweight and lightweight champion of Cage Warriors. He is currently ranked #12 in the UFC lightweight rankings as of June 27, 2022.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated him in his professional boxing debut. He is the most popular pay-per-view (PPV) draw in MMA history, having headlined five of the top six UFC pay-per-view events. At UFC 229, his fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov drew 2.4 million PPV buys, the most ever for an MMA event. In North America, his boxing match with Mayweather drew 4.3 million PPV buys, the second most in combat sports history. Forbes named McGregor the world’s highest-paid athlete in 2021, with a reported $180 million. He was also on the list in 2018, ranking fourth with a reported income of $99 million.
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Early Life
Conor McGregor, the son of Tony and Margaret McGregor, was born in Crumlin, Dublin. He grew up in Crumlin and went to Irish-language schools, including Gaelscoil Scoil Mológa in Harold’s Cross for primary school and Gaelcholáiste Coláiste de hde in Tallaght for secondary school, where he also discovered his love of football.
He used to play football for Lourdes Celtic Football Club. He also began boxing at Crumlin Boxing Club at the age of 12 to defend himself against bullies and boost his confidence.
McGregor moved to Lucan, Dublin, with his family in 2006 to attend Gaelcholáiste Coláiste Cois Life. After that, he began a plumbing apprenticeship. While in Lucan, he met future UFC fighter Tom Egan, and the two quickly began training in mixed martial arts (MMA).
Personal Life
Erin and Aoife McGregor are McGregor’s sisters. Since 2008, he has been in a relationship with his fiancée or wife-to-be, Dee Devlin. Conor Jr, Croa, and Ran are their three children. McGregor frequently trains at Reykjavik’s Mjölnir gym, alongside fellow UFC fighter Gunnar Nelson. He has stated that he does not practise any pre-fight rituals or superstitions because they are “a form of fear”. McGregor is a devout Catholic. McGregor enjoys watching football and supports both Celtic and Manchester United. As a friend of Sergio Ramos, he has also expressed his support for Paris Saint-Germain.
Conor McGregor Career
McGregor began his training in boxing before moving on to SBG Ireland to train with John Kavanagh, the first Irish person to achieve a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and his team. Prior to competing in professional MMA, he also trained in Tae Kwon Do, Karate, Capoeira, and Kickboxing.
Conor made his amateur MMA debut at the age of 18 a year later. In his debut, he won by TKO in the first round. Conor was on welfare in Ireland just a few weeks before his MMA debut, receiving $235 per week in government assistance checks.
The UFC announced in February 2013 that they had signed McGregor to a multi-fight contract. He was the company’s second fighter from the Republic of Ireland at the time, following welterweight Tom Egan. McGregor made his UFC debut on April 6, 2013, against Marcus Brimage and won his first fight via TKO just over a minute into the first round. McGregor also received his first Knockout of the Night award as a result of his victory.
McGregor is a wide-stance striker who has successfully developed a variety of other combat forms in order to succeed and continue to climb into the top 10. His fast straight arm left jab, according to some, is his most effective move. McGregor has had an incredible rise for a foreign-born UFC fighter.
Net Worth
Conor McGregor is a $200 million net worth Irish professional fighter. Conor’s net worth includes a roughly $100 million payday from his August 2017 fight against Floyd Mayweather, a $50 million payday from his October 2018 fight against Khabib, and an estimated $200 million pre-tax earnings from the sale of his whiskey brand Proper No. Twelve in April 2021.
Earnings
Conor earned $5 million when he defeated Chad Mendes at UFC 189 on July 11, 2015. Conor earned a reported $12 million after defeating Jose Aldo in 13 seconds on December 11, 2015. Conor McGregor reportedly earned a minimum of $10 million, and possibly as much as $15 million, when he fought Nate Diaz at UFC 196 on March 5, 2016. When he fought Nate Diaz again at UFC 202, he reportedly earned $25 million. In November 2016, he earned around $7 million fighting Eddie Alvarez. In October 2018, he earned an estimated $50 million from his fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Total UFC earnings to date: approximately $115 million (including Khabib’s $50 million payday).
Conor McGregor defeated Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in his much-anticipated return to the UFC on January 18, 2020. Conor was guaranteed $5 million for the fight, a UFC record at the time. In interviews, he has hinted that if Pay Per View sales are strong, his earnings from the Cerrone fight could top $80 million. Cerrone was promised $2 million if he showed up.
Conor was defeated by Dustin Poirier on January 23, 2021. Conor was guaranteed $5 million once more. Conor effectively lost a huge future payday by killing another match against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Conor fought Floyd Mayweather in the boxing ring on August 26, 2017, making the transition from the MMA cage. The fight brought in 4.3 million purchases, making it one of the most successful PPV events ever. Conor’s earnings at that level included guarantees, merchandise royalties, concessions, and bonuses, totalling an estimated $100 million. Conor’s net worth after the Floyd fight was $85 million if you assume he lost about 50% of his earnings to taxes and had $100 million in gross earnings.
Conor McGregor Leg Injury
Conor McGregor’s trainer, John Kavanagh, has provided additional information about his athlete’s horrifying broken leg, claiming the Irishman broke the bone when he kicked Dustin Poirier’s elbow late in their UFC 264 lightweight match last weekend.
With only a few seconds left in the first round, McGregor’s leg gave way beneath him and prevented the former featherweight and lightweight champion from continuing.
Poirier believes the first injury occurred when he checked a low kick earlier in the round, and that it worsened when McGregor used the same leg to support a punch just before the fight ended.
After McGregor vehemently refuted those allegations, Kavanagh has now disclosed the true nature of the injury. It all comes down to stance and technique. In the closing seconds of the round, McGregor managed to get to his feet again after a few minutes of being pinned up against the cage and engaged Poirier for one final time on his feet. Kavanagh attributes the leg break to an attempted teep kick to Poirier’s stomach.
Retirement
Conor announced in a cryptic tweet on March 25, 2019, that he was giving up MMA fighting to concentrate solely on his new business endeavours, like his Proper 12 whiskey line. He retires with roughly $235 million in total career earnings if he is truly done fighting.