Newly crowned UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor told reporters he can be as big a box-office hit as boxing sensation Floyd Mayweather after his stunning win at UFC 194 on Saturday.
The ever-confident Irishman’s claims came after an incredible title-fight victory over Jose Aldo, when McGregor knocked out the longtime belt holder in just 13 seconds with a precision left hook.
That bout pulled in a whopping $10.1 million gate, yet the 27-year-old still isn’t satisfied and said he wants to hit the dizzy $72 million heights set by Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao back in May—via Anton Tabuena of Bloody Elbow:
What did Floyd vs Manny do? 72 million? I'm catching up. I'm only 27. Them old m-----------s were 40 before they got that. I'm only warming up! At 27 years of age, I stand here, the unified world champion. Back-to-back MGM gate records. This is trending as the highest pay-per-view, [Dave] Sholler I believe said, of all time for the UFC.
McGregor has never been shy about his own ability and box-office appeal, but he truly put his money where his mouth is on Saturday, as BT Sport’s video shows:
WOW! @TheNotoriousMMA KOs @josealdojunior in 13 seconds. ?????? #AndNew #UFC194 https://t.co/53rqGJ2OhB
— #UFC194 (@btsportufc) December 13, 2015
Moving up to the lightweight division is the next step for the marketable Irishman, who will undoubtedly have a target on his back.
Yet that’s something he’s more than happy to carry, and said that whenever he takes to the ring, it’s a “superfight”:
"At 27 years of age, with every record in the book, with weight divisions above, ready for me to go at, super-fights left and right. Tell me one other champion who has been like that. I'm bringing these numbers, and sky's the limit."
Raking in a $72 million gate does seem a little far-fetched, but everything about McGregor makes him a star—from the pre-fight trash talk to his emphatic ability in the ring.
However, it seems there’s a fair bit of substance to his hype, as McGregor is one of the precious few who would have predicted a 13-second knockout on Saturday night.
The featherweight champion told James Edwards of the Daily Mirror he knew Aldo would overload on his right hand—thus allowing him to take full advantage with his fearsome left:
I said his right hand would get him into trouble. I said he'd overload on his right hand, and that's what happened. I see these shots. I see these sequences. If you truly believe in it. If you become vocal with it—you are creating that law of attraction and it will become reality. So, mystic Mac strikes again.
Aldo has since expressed his desire to get back in the ring with McGregor—per Josh Gross of the Guardian—and that bout in itself could prove just how much of a front-page star the Irishman is.
The pre-fight talk will start again, likewise the almost endearing arrogance, and, naturally, the cash will keep piling up. He’s a lot like Mayweather in that sense, and if any fighter on the UFC circuit can come close to the American’s figures, it’s McGregor.
