By: Sean Crose
Conor McGregor is back…in the ring that is. And yes, he’s still Conor McGregor, still spreading controversy wherever he goes, and still reportedly not doing all that great in between the ropes. Last Friday night in Dublin, the UFC star and international celebrity engaged in an exhibition boxing match in his home country of Ireland against Michael McGrane, an Irish electrician and boxing hopeful. Needless to say, the event has drawn attention.
McGrane, it seems, took a left hook from McGregor at the beginning of the fight, when he argues the two men were supposed to touch gloves. “It was as the cheapest shot I ever caught in me life, man,” McGrane, a good natured type, told TMZ, which has video of the incident. “You’re meant to go back to your corner,” McGrane claimed, “but Conor never went back to his corner… leaped at me with a left hook.” TMZ showcased the mark on McGrane’s face that he said came from the McGregor shot. Needless to say, McGregor was not called out for the blow.
“The ref was on his side,” said McGrane. “There’s no way I would have won that fight unless I knocked him out.” With that in mind, TMZ claims it’s been “told the fight ended in a DRAW,” which pretty much means McGregor may well have yet to win a ring battle in either the amateur or professional ranks since becoming a household name several years ago. At the moment, the man known as “The Notorious” is kinda-sorta retired from the UFC and swimming in controversy, some of it quite serious and disturbing.
Through it all, however, McGregor has made it a point to stay in the public eye. Whether he’s pushing his Proper 12 whiskey brand on television, or posting comments on Instagram, the man is terminally keeping himself in the news. Although he tried to crack into boxing by facing Floyd Mayweather in 2017, McGregor ended up being stopped by Mayweather in the tenth round in what had essentially become a one sided fight. The cheap shot story, however, shows that McGregor may have learned some lessons from the old master, as Mayweather famously stopped a dirty-fighting Victor Ortiz via cheap shot back in 2011.
Although openly grateful for the opportunity to face an enormous star like McGregor, McGrane expressed shock at the surprise left hook. “Conor McGregor hit me a cheap shot in his own hometown!!!” TMZ quotes the man exclaiming.