Every king needs a mural.
NBA superstar LeBron James has one in Cleveland, and now deep in the heart of Dublin, UFC featherweight Conor McGregor can admire a larger-than-life image of himself engulfed in flames on the side of a building on O'Connell Street.
This was put up today on O'Connell Street in Dublin. RT @PadraigFPendred: @PendredMMA @TheNotoriousMMA pic.twitter.com/dYon3cCJ4L
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 9, 2014
O'Connell Street, btw, the main street in Dublin. Don't get bigger than that there.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 9, 2014
And to think it was just a little over a year ago that McGregor made his UFC debut. The meteoric rise of the Irish star has literally been a story in itself. McGregor has accomplished more in four UFC fights than few have accomplished in their entire careers.
Pundits in sports often refer to an "it" factor that tends to separate true superstars from the rest of the herd. McGregor is without question a world-class fighter, but so are many other of his peers competing in the UFC.
Perhaps it's the expensive yet eloquent suits worn at media events, or it could be his unwavering confidence whenever he speaks.
Whatever the case may be, people can't seem to get enough of McGregor. After receiving access to the UFC's Fight Pass statistics, Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole recently compiled a list that shows McGregor topping Jon Jones, Nick Diaz and Anderson Silva as the most searched fighter on Fight Pass.
UFC President Dana White has been singing McGregor's praises for a while now. If anything, these statistics go a long way in backing up what the boss has been saying.
"I've been telling everyone this, but maybe this will give me evidence to back up what I've been saying, and that is that Conor McGregor is a huge star," White said, per Nate Wilcox of Bloody Elbow. "People are interested in what he's doing, they want to see him fight, and they're going to Fight Pass to check him out."
At UFC 178, McGregor stopped featherweight contender Dustin Poirier in the first round, likely earning himself a shot at the winner of Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes for the featherweight title.
In the post-fight interview, UFC commentator Joe Rogan informed McGregor that 10 percent of the tickets sold for the pay-per-view event came from Ireland.
Whether we like it or not, we are all living in the Conor McGregor era.
Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA writer for Rocktagon.
