In short
Podcast Summary: The Upshot - Episode: Conor McGregor: the scummiest man on the planet | Part One
Episode Overview In this episode of The Upshot, the hosts delve into the tumultuous life and career of Conor McGregor, once celebrated as a genius in combat sports. The narrative explores his rise from a promising fighter to a controversial figure marked by erratic behavior, drug use, and criminal convictions. The discussion paints McGregor as a tragic figure whose fall from grace was as spectacular as his meteoric rise.
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Key Themes and Discussions
Early Life and Career
- Background
- Born in Dublin in 1988.
- Started boxing at age 12 to defend against bullies.
- Transitioned from a plumbing apprenticeship to MMA training, supported by coach John Kavanagh.
- Initial Struggles
- Faced a mixed record in early MMA fights.
- First conviction for assault in 2009.
- Breakthrough
- Won eight consecutive fights and became the first fighter to hold both the lightweight and featherweight titles in Cage Warriors.
- Attracted attention from UFC president Dana White.
Rise to Fame
- UFC Debut
- Made his UFC debut in April 2013, knocking out Marcus Brimage and celebrating with a flashy purchase of a solid gold pocket watch.
- Champion Status
- Became a national hero after winning the featherweight title against José Aldo in just 13 seconds, showcasing his uncanny ability to predict fight strategies.
- Bravado and Charisma
- Known for his trash-talking and confidence, which drew massive crowds and generated significant revenue for UFC.
- Phrases like "red panty night" became part of UFC lexicon, denoting high-profile fights.
Controversies and Downfall
- Erratic Behavior
- His lifestyle began to spiral out of control with substance abuse and reckless behavior.
- Notable incidents include an altercation at Bellator 187 and public displays of arrogance, like speeding out of a courtroom after being convicted of speeding.
- Media Persona
- Engaged in flamboyant antics and high-profile feuds, particularly with Nate Diaz, which became one of the most notable rivalries in UFC history.
- Loss and Consequences
- Suffered his first UFC loss to Diaz, but quickly rebounded in a rematch.
- Became the first fighter to hold two belts simultaneously, further inflating his ego.
Cultural Impact and Legacy
- Celebrity Status
- Became a household name, associated with various celebrities and known for his lavish lifestyle.
- His behavior raised questions about the impact of fame and fortune on personal conduct, especially within the sports community.
- Future Prospects
- Despite achieving unprecedented success, his future appears uncertain as he faces increasing scrutiny for his behavior both inside and outside the octagon.
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Key Takeaways
- The episode illustrates the duality of McGregor as both a talented fighter and a deeply flawed individual whose personal demons overshadowed his professional achievements.
- It raises poignant questions about the effects of fame and success on character and the responsibilities that come with being a public figure.
- The hosts provide a mix of humor and serious critique, highlighting McGregor's complex persona and the consequences of his lifestyle choices.
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Next Episode Preview
- The narrative promises to continue with McGregor's descent into chaos, discussing further scandals, substance abuse, and his interactions with the media.
- Listeners can expect to learn more about the darker aspects of his life in Part Two.
Call to Action
- For those who want to delve deeper into McGregor's story and the world of UFC, join The Upshot’s Patreon for instant access to Part Two and additional content.
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This summary encapsulates the highlights and thematic elements from the podcast episode, providing an accessible format for understanding the complexities of Conor McGregor's life and career.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOIntroducing Conor McGregor's Controversies
1:15 to 1:50
Explore the rise and controversies surrounding Conor McGregor.
“Conor McGregor was once considered a combat genius who ranked alongside the likes of Sun Tzu, Bruce Lee, and Fionn McCool.”
The Secret Location and Fear of Confrontation
1:50 to 4:30
Join the hosts as they express their fears about discussing McGregor and their location.
“The chess team are finally reporting the school bully to the deputy head.”
Conor McGregor's Early Life and Career Beginnings
4:30 to 9:19
Learn about McGregor's childhood, early boxing journey, and MMA beginnings.
“So Conor McGregor was born in Dublin in 1988.”
McGregor's Rise in the UFC
9:19 to 12:39
Discover how McGregor's unique style and wins elevated him in the UFC.
“and when he does make his comeback it's against Diego Brandao and it's at the O2 in Dublin his hometown, the sellout crowd 9 ,500 people and they are all behind him.”
McGregor's Personality and Humor
12:39 to 14:02
Explore McGregor's charismatic personality and humor during fights.
“That guy looks like a f***ing orange cotton candy.”
The Rise of Conor McGregor
16:08 to 18:13
Discuss Conor McGregor's ascent in UFC and his memorable trash talk.
“When I saw him, when I see him, I just remember about Scooby-Doo.”
Aldo vs. McGregor: The Big Fight
18:13 to 18:53
Learn about the iconic fight where McGregor knocks out Aldo.
“But also, because surely you're sort of giving away your advantage there.”
The Red Panty Fight
20:12 to 21:34
Explore McGregor's famous quote about the financial implications of fighting him.
“Wherever in the world you want to go and beat up the locals.”
McGregor vs. Diaz Rivalry
21:34 to 22:51
Delve into the competitive rivalry between McGregor and Nate Diaz.
“becomes one of the best rivals in UFC history.”
McGregor's Iconic Post-Fight Moment
22:51 to 24:18
Witness McGregor's unforgettable post-fight interview and his rise to fame.
“I just want to say from the bottom of me heart, I'd like to take this chance to apologise to absolutely nobody.”
Show all 16 chapters
Life After UFC Championship
24:18 to 25:25
Learn about McGregor's life after achieving double championship status.
“I mean, this could be the moment he gets absolutely tweaked, innit?”
McGregor's Wild Liverpool Bender
25:25 to 28:01
Discover the wild escapades of McGregor during a bender in Liverpool.
“Anyone who drives that car is a fucking wrong.”
Conor's Youth and Reputation
28:01 to 29:51
Exploration of Conor McGregor's childhood and early reputation for mischief.
“What else would a Oliver Gray kid do at school?”
Rumors and Relationships
29:52 to 30:48
Discussion of rumors surrounding McGregor's relationships and lifestyle choices.
“Someone else messaged saying that basically that Connor was at an afters and there was this transgender woman who's like mid transition.”
The Rise to Fame and Controversy
30:49 to 34:18
Detailed account of McGregor's rise in the fight world and the surrounding controversies.
“Conor's on top form, brands the promoter a weasel and a fucking bitch, accuses him of cutting his mic during press conferences apparently to favor Mayweather.”
Bellator Chaos and Legal Issues
34:19 to 36:59
Overview of McGregor's chaotic moment at Bellator and subsequent legal troubles.
“and he does lose by technical knockout in the 10th round.”
Transcript
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1:15Conor McGregor was once considered a combat genius who ranked alongside the likes of Sun Tzu, Bruce Lee, and Fionn McCool. But then came the cocaine, convictions, and carnage. As his mask slipped, the unhinged Irishman turned into a frothing beast, smashing up buses, punching granddads, and peppering porn stars with dick pics. From ayahuasca in the jungle to shagging at funerals, this is the story of Conor McGregor. You're gonna hate him. This is it, people. Welcome back. This is it. The chess team are finally reporting the school bully to the deputy head. we're going after him the nerds are fighting back we're speaking out we're silent no longer we are we are using like a voice scrambling technology right for this episode yeah I'll certainly be disguising our location yeah we are finally braving it coming to you from a secret location I've never been more scared have we locked the door?
2:17yeah we've had how many guests have dropped out of doing this episode? four four different potential guests I was wondering why I got the call up it was unusual Hardest bloke, I know. You're sort of the only guy in the year above who doesn't wedgie us. So we thought, if we do have to face down the bully, I want to get you on side. Were you thinking, look, we need to bring some muscle on today? I know. Exactly. And it is a cokey one, which special, special area. I was thinking before this, if all three of us were in the octagon with Conor McGregor, or one of us landing a punch on Conor before he knocks us out.
2:52I'm running. What is the tactic? I don't know. the three of us and who do you think he's taken out first I think you've got so one of us has got to sacrifice themselves and then the other two have just got to hope for the best yeah can we not do a sort of one person kneels down behind him that's honestly the only hope but I don't think I'd back myself to topple him backwards over the kneeling one I think even if he had one arm tied behind his back we'd still not beat him as a three what would our tactic be do you think split up into the into the three quarters and then just it'd be like Hunger Games in reality we are just we're just running it's every man for himself push you towards him I jump out yeah yeah this is brave for us this is our Charlie Hebdo really isn't it it's us facing the biggest fear and risking all kinds of recriminations because as many of the guests who pulled out pointed out Conor McGregor might actually come and beat the shit out of us yeah very likely and I am scared yeah unfortunately we're also going to Dublin quite soon brilliant so I mean we've got we've got a live show there He doesn't own the pub, does he?
3:56Yeah. I mean, I genuinely wouldn't be surprised if he or his like geezers turned up to our live show and assaulted us. Yeah. And we'd have it coming. Terrified. So there's the big whiff of fear among us pussies today. Yeah. And yeah, it's a fucking mad one. As I said, four guests have pulled out, but it's also, it's our most requested sportsman for an episode. Ever. People keep asking. Yeah. And finally plucked up the courage. Because, yeah, it's the scumbag scumbag. The worst of all time. Shall we get into it? Yeah. Zach, take us back to the start. Let's go back to the start. So Conor McGregor was born in Dublin in 1988.
4:38Picked up boxing when he was 12. Apparently to defend himself against bullies, which seems... We've said that he basically has the vibe of a terrifying school bully who's still, like 15 years after he's left school, is still finding the old nerds that he used to be beating up. But yeah, apparently he was a bit of a target himself. I mean, that's what the nerds say when they're reporting the school bully, isn't it? It's like bullies are just bullied themselves. I mean, psychologically, maybe that explains a lot of why he's like it now. It's all connected. You're getting into psychology already.
5:14So anyway, yeah, he wanted to defend himself against these bullies, raise his confidence a bit, which arguably worked a bit too well um finished secondary school when he was 17 and started off a plumbing apprenticeship but he hated it it was just just not for him and he decided to jack it in and was living on benefits for a while while he started training mma with this guy called john kavanagh um so one of their first training sessions at john's gym connor was sparring with with uh with this female fighter called ashling daly who she was she was a good fighter she was one of the best irish mma fighters for a while but generally the other the lads at the gym would would be a bit less rough with her than than you would if you're fighting fighting another man but connor ends up sparring with her and just decks her straight off john john kavanagh the the trainer jumps into the ring and just beats the shit out of connor I really probably deserve that.
6:16It's actually not the only excuse that John would have for doing that, though. Because at one of Conor's first fights, Conor, he's flogging the tickets himself. And at the end, he's supposed to pay John back. John's organized it. He's the promoter. But Conor ends up not selling enough tickets. And then he loses the fight as well. And at the end, he just legs it with all the cash he's raised and just disappears for three weeks. It's not the only time he does that. There's a couple of occasions. But John keeps on taking him back because he can see the potential that Conor's got. And in 2008, he has his first pro MMA fight.
6:54He's a lightweight at this point, and he wins it by technical knockout. Next few years, he starts fighting a lot. But to begin with, it's a mixed bag, some wins, some defeats. He's getting some practice and scrapping outside the ring as well. you'll be surprised to hear so he gets his first conviction for assault in 2009 in 2011 though Connor finally starts to deliver on his potential he wins 8 fights in a row and during this run he wins the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship both the lightweight and the featherweight titles he's the first person to hold both those belts simultaneously in whatever that is what was it called again cage warriors cage warriors fighting championships I mean they're probably fucking terrifying blokes wouldn't say it's their face but what the fuck is that that sounds terrifying it sounds like the sort of thing you have like in the base in like a multi-story car park dog fighting next door Siberia somewhere but anyway him winning these two titles simultaneously catches the attention of Dana White and the UFC.
8:09So there'd been a lot of clamor for UFC to sign Conor, who's this upcoming fighter. And in April 2013, McGregor does make his UFC debut against Marcus Brimage, wins by knockout in the first round, and afterwards reveals that he'd spent his first UFC paycheck on a solid gold pocket watch. Well, like on a chain. I guess so, yeah. Start as you mean to go on. We've got a clip of his interview here. We get looked after when we finish. This promotion wants finishes and that's what I'm looking for these custom-made suits aren't cheap this solid gold pocket watch Three people died making this watch, you know So I need to I need to put people away.
8:46I need them big fights. I'm gonna end up in death pretty fast You know I mean, so I'm looking there. I'm not gonna hurry it along you could sort of see his bravado and his Like people are a bit monotonous. It's fucking good. Yeah, yeah wins his second fight as well but actually gets quite badly injured in that one he realises afterwards that he's torn his ACL and it keeps him out for the next 10 months he used to do that a lot, didn't he, his ACL I think there's some fucking nasty injuries in UFC but by this point his star is really on the up and when he does make his comeback it's against Diego Brandao and it's at the O2 in Dublin his hometown, the sellout crowd 9 ,500 people and they are all behind him.
9:33It's loud, rowdy crowd. And Conor delivers, wins it in the first round, brings the house down, wins a couple more fights after that. And in 2015, he gets his first chance at the featherweight championship title. Yeah. So he has to fight this guy, Chad Mendes, which is great. Great UFC. Out of the random name generator it falls. That sounds like a WWE name. Yeah. Or a high school bully, actually. The quarterback who's wedging. Chad Mendes. This is, so they basically fight to be the interim, basically to be the challenger for the belt. And this fight breaks the UFC record. 16 ,000 in the crowd, 7 million just in gate receipts.
10:19And Conor's entrance song, The Foggy Jew, is sung live by Sinead O 'Connor, the singer-songwriter. they have quite a different vibe Conor McGregor and Sinead O 'Connor but they were really good mates were they? yeah I find that hard to imagine well she I mean she had a wild era didn't she but not in the Conor McGregor vibe yeah I wouldn't put him in the same sort of what do you mean Conor now? yeah so back then he was Irish hero yeah and like you know humble origins fighter doing everyone proud he's fucking funny I don't know I don't know Sinead O 'Connor well enough but it was different times for sure it's a beautiful song but yeah so he wins the fight and he's now an Irish national hero and he's the most famous guy in UFC no one can pull crowds like him it's actually hard to really appreciate what a hero he is but even by this point you're basically thinking Bono and George Best yeah but he's Northern Irish does that matter I don't know I don't think he's thought of in the same and also just he's dead yeah he's dead by then yeah yeah he's massive and his whole shtick is about this like weird, we talked about it, the sort of solemn dedication to the craft and this weird style of movement and discipline.
11:32So he has this like crocodile walk thing he does. We've got a clip here where he gets really low and walks like a sort of lizard crocodile. He's really bendy, isn't he? Yeah, but this is so good. This inspired so many weird blokes in gyms and in parks. It's like you've never seen a human move like this before. He gets like really fucking low and then... Fucking insect. Can you imagine? It's really... Look at that. It's so scary. He's so low. Look at his legs! Is the idea that he then comes up at you? Like a lizard. Like he's always beneath you. A serious body weight as well. It's so good. If you're listening on audio, I recommend clicking the link.
12:14We'll put it in the show notes so you can look it up. He's done the splits as well. Here we go. Do you know what I mean? It's like, it's this like fine physical specimen who's like, got this amazing like control and mastery of himself there's an interview he does around them when he says i am at peace ready for war and he says if you can see it and have the courage enough to speak it it will happen you know i mean it's like it's yeah he's sort of the sort of the philosopher yeah i mean it's fortune cookie philosophy but you know what i mean it's like there's something erudite about it um but he's also got this other side where he's just really fucking funny yeah he takes the piss out of everyone so here he is rinsing uriah faber so They're on this reality TV show about UFC.
12:54He's a fellow fighter. What's up, little man? How are you? Big head? Butt face. Acne scar? Are they pals? That guy looks like a f***ing orange cotton candy. You look like a 50-year-old retired skateboarder. So true. A little fat old man you look like. Am I fat? Am I fat? Let's be honest, bud. Let's be honest. You're not wearing your high heels? No, they're Python. Oh, those shoes. Python? I hunted them myself. You don't even know what Python is in America. Python sounds like a... Something... It's something. You don't have a bum-ass come before I do. Yeah, you think? Yeah. I do think. You're wrong.
13:38It's proper like that scene in the office with Brent and Finchie where they're just rinsing each other. Like, it's just really awkward standing there. I feel like the American just had no chance. Yeah, but you can also see when he runs out of jokes. He goes, pipe, because he pronounces it python. He's like, python sounds like something you find in a sewer. You look like a 50-year-old child skateboarder. You just know in his head when he's dying that he's just like, oh, fuck, I fucked this. Think of something. We all have that dream trip we've been wishing we could go on. But too often, life, or usually price, gets in the way.
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16:01Why wait? Ask your doctor. Visit BotoxChronicMigraine.com or call 1-800-44-BOTOX to learn more. um anyway con is now fighting for the featherweight championship against jose aldo and uh this is a big fucking fight 10 to 20 000 irish fans fly to vegas for it on several of the flights the cabin crew have to break up fights between the fans who are all like hammered gacked up and just like lusting for blood one flight from jfk to vegas has to be sent back due to some irishman fighting squaddy footy out there have you ever seen those clips of people flying on those it's a bit like do you ever see those like friday night 9 p.m ryan air flights to ibiza and there's just people openly doing drugs on the plane on a fucking plane it's like that but with more fighting um and connor's really stoking the trash talk uh there's a great little sit down where he's with jose aldo who doesn't speak english he's got a translator and connor he has some fun with that Your coach was ringing Dana.
17:03Please don't let me call on him. My father made me a man. I don't care about what he's saying. I'm your father. I'm your daddy, eh? Call me Jose Sr. When I saw him, when I see him, I just remember about Scooby-Doo. Tell him I'm his daddy. Tell him I'm his daddy. I really don't care. Tell him I'm his daddy. He can talk whatever he wants, and I'll continue to be the champion. He said, tell him he's his daddy. My father raised me like this, like a man. He's hot. I said, I am his daddy.
17:35Sit on my lap. I'm the one. Sit on my lap. You'll never be. He dominates it. The kick he gets when she finally translates. He says he's your daddy. He's like, yes. Oh, that's great. So simple, but so funny. More impressively, before the fight, mcgregor also predicts how he's gonna win so he he says he basically says and again it's this quite like steely serious thing he says that basically he's noticed that jose aldo has this twitch in his right hand which means he's gonna lead with his right and he said i think he's gonna over commit leave some dead space and i'll move into it wow and bring violence or something like that it's quite muhammad ali to predict you remember muhammad ali used to name the round number and all that stuff that's like one thing but actually telling him like i've cracked you yeah and before the fight.
18:26But also, because surely you're sort of giving away your advantage there. Yeah, it's probably too late for him to fix it though, isn't it? Well, in the fight, what happens? He knocks him out in 13 seconds, exactly how he said he would. So Aldo leads with the right, over commits, Conor smashes him. Wow. Yeah. And that ends. Jose Aldo had been featherweight champion for seven years. Wow. It's a big deal. And Conor McGregor is world featherweight champion. He's on top of the world. Now, if you are a gacked up Irishman stuck at JFK flying to a Conor McGregor fight. By the way, JFK is a fucking miserable airport.
19:00Have you guys spent time there? It's proper, like, backward. You know, if you're stuck there, you've got a bit of bag on your person that you were smuggling for the flight, but it's run out because your flight turned back, and you want to do a few crocodile walk videos, post them on Insta, you're going to want some data. You're going to want some cheap data you can use abroad, aren't you? And you do not get that with your usual phone network so you're going to need salie salie is a new e-sim service app brought to you by the makers of nordvpn uh so you guys know the drill you download it once you get cheap data plans for 200 countries so it's the cheapest easiest way to use your phone abroad um so yeah guys next time you're flying out for a fight yeah best of all actually salie are giving a 15 discount to Upshot listeners and you get NordVPN in there as well.
19:49That is a fucking great one. You can use NordVPN as well as you can stream stuff. So yeah, just download Saley S A I L Y in the app store or go to Saley.com forward slash Upshot. Use code Upshot at checkout 15 % off. I'll put a link in the, in the show notes. Boom. Yeah. So this is sort of my equivalent of Connor's whiskey. He does whiskey in his own stout. and then we're doing sim cards. And then cheap data. Cheap data. Wherever in the world you want to go and beat up the locals. Yeah. You need data to film it and tell everyone. Yeah. Right. So having beaten Jose Aldo and become world champion, Conor now has to defend his title and his unfortunate opponent is Rafael dos Anjos.
20:36So they're brought together for this title bout in March 2016. And ahead of it, Conor delivers another famous line. I can make you rich. I change your bum life. You fight me, it's a celebration. When you sign to fight me, it's a celebration. You ring back home. You ring your wife. Baby, we done it. We're rich, baby. Conor McGregor made us rich. Break out the red panties. We're rich, baby. So don't say you would not take that fight because you would take that fight like everyone else up here would take the fight against me if it was offered, regardless of belts or any of that shit. So that fight becomes known as the red panty fight.
21:11And actually, the phrase now means any big money fight. Really? In the UFC, they call it a red panty fight. It's so good. Unfortunately for Doss Anjos, he never gets the chance to make the money and see the red panties because he breaks his foot in the build-up. Oh, fuck. Which I guess is like, are you missing out on shitloads of cash then? You'd be absolutely fine. So instead, Conor faces Nate Diaz, and this rivalry between him and Nate Diaz becomes one of the best rivals in UFC history. Nate gets pretty similar treatment in the build-up to the fight. Hey, Conor. Nate, it's Jane Wells with CNBC.
21:42How are you? Very good. How are you? I'm gonna talk about money because we are the business network and the the business of the U.S.T. and all that sort of stuff. I'll take over from here Nate. You can bounce. Take a coffee break Nate. And by coffee break I mean bring me my coffee. No. They want you to give us a quick count to ten both of you gentlemen if you don't mind. Just if you wouldn't mind counting to ten. Nate can only count to five.
22:11Count to five Nate will you if you can. and hurry up with that coffee. And hurry up with that coffee. You can't deny it's fucking funny. Also, like, there, there's like a cheekiness and charm to it that just isn't there now. Am I imagining that? Why the hell have they got those two on like a business network? Well, I guess it was a big money fight and UFC was like a big new story, wasn't it? Nate just can't handle it. Yeah, he doesn't really say it. He just goes, fuck off. Fuck it, I'll just get the coffee. Can he count to five? It'd be easier if I just get the coffee. Maybe then he'll leave me alone.
22:47but for all that big talk in the octagon it's nate who triumphs connor taps out in the second round really it's his first ever ufc loss in 21 fights yeah yeah shame it does become one of ufc's great rivalries as i said and in the rematch three months later one and a half minute 1.65 million people pay to watch on tv fuck ufc record and connor wins by majority decision gets his belt back and his confidence is high once again three months later he's fighting again for the lightweight belt so this is a separate belt he's fighting against eddie alvarez and this is considered his best ever performance so he drops eddie alvarez multiple times wins in the second round and becomes the first person to hold two belts in the ufc that'll do his confidence much like he did in that other one he needed that yeah he needs a confidence boost kind of like that and then right after the fight he's interviewed by joe rogan which tells you how long ago this was that's the that's another like venn diagram for that world did joe used to present ufc yeah he was like a like he did the interviews and stuff yeah commentator yeah um and in the post-fight interview right after he's covered in sweat he's still sort of rabid he delivers his most iconic line.
24:04I just want to say from the bottom of me heart, I'd like to take this chance to apologise to absolutely nobody. The double champ does what the f*** he wants. Have a seat. Don't erase the f***. I mean, this could be the moment he gets absolutely tweaked, innit? That's what I dreamed into reality. I think it is. I think this is the moment it's all going to its head. How do you get any better? What else can you do? yeah well he's at the absolute peak of his powers yeah and you know what comes after that well you ask what where do you go from that he's conquered the world of ufc and after this connor he actually decides that he's gonna gonna take a bit of time off from ufc so he got his first child due in 2017 but if you think connor is perusing the aisles of mother care picking out buggies and painting the spare bedroom baby blue then think again because a month before the baby is born Connor jets off to Liverpool for a five day bender around the Grand National so he's just he's on an absolute rager at one point he posted this photo we're looking at now of him standing on the bonnet of a Rolls Royce he's captioned Liverpool we run your entire city when he says we you mean me and my crew he's got that matte black car.
25:26It's the Matt Black. Anyone who drives that car is a fucking wrong. The number plate is boss. Quite weird for that. If you see a Matt Black car with the license plate boss, it guarantees wrong. Yeah. No good man has ever driven it. Yeah. Well, the owner of the car rental firm spotted this photo of Connor standing on the bonnet. It was a rental car. It was a rental car. He replied, replied to the post, slightly denting Connor's aura. He replied, he stood on the car acting like it's his own. It is not his own. When you own one, Connor, you can stand on it. Until then, you can lose your deposit. Fair enough, mate.
26:02Fair enough. You can lose your deposit. That's so good. Drop a slap on the wrist. Yeah. You can pay an extra cleaning charge as well. So yeah, he's just, he's on a, on a rager in Liverpool. Oh, like he's, there's, there's all these videos of him in nightclubs, just, just living life. Uh, one, one night, he goes in this all night, bender and then rocks up in an afters in a treehouse someone post the video but we've got it here he looks pretty gacky oh there he is there's a rabbit in a headline we'll link to this imagine like you know you're back in your childhood home and you're going like oh should we go to a tree house for a bit of a session and suddenly conor mcgregor turns up you're like eyes are bulging yeah we'll link to the video but he looks gacked off as yeah there are actually some comments on the reddit post with this video saying that the guy in the video with Conor was a big time coke and heroin dealer from Liverpool he's been banged up now the sort of circles that he's keeping yeah so it wasn't just your classic student house party after was that tree house or sort of hideout yeah looks like a tree house doesn't it yeah we actually had a message another message from a guy called Paddy about this period that he spent in Liverpool he said there's a woman in my area who says she shagged him that week and he's the father of her son she gave him the surname McGregor so now there's some poor seven year old in school trying to convince everyone he's Connor's son really picture she's like dressed him exactly like a little free piece suit yeah just crocodile walking into the playground sunglasses yeah yeah Yeah, unfortunately that kid is going to turn out to be a right twat.
27:57She's giving him his surname. That'll do it. That'll convince him. What do you reckon? What else would a Oliver Gray kid do at school? There's a lot of just fighting. Yeah. If he turns out to be really aggressive and fucking a bit arrogant, maybe. Yeah. Yeah, going to the teacher, get me my fucking coffee. count to five. Go on. Where's my coffee? The teacher's like, look, Connor Jr., you need to apologize for what you just said. I apologize to absolutely fucking nobody.
28:36Yeah. Tell him I'm your daddy. I'm your daddy. Yeah, that kid is going to be insufferable. Obviously, it's hard to actually verify whether that story is true, but we do hear a lot of stories about McGregor shagging around that time. There's a lot of videos that are posted of girls showing him passed out in their beds. Yeah, there's one from that week in Liverpool and it's like a girl's like dancing to the selfie thing. You can tell her it's like morning and then she goes to the bed and Conor McGregor's in her bed. Do you think he's just got like an agreement with his wife? Yeah. I think he, I mean, must do unless she's got a head.
29:12Because he's so well known. He's so recognisable. He's fucking... Because he, they've been going out since like 2008 or something like that yeah they met on bebo i saw yeah really i found her on bebo or she did one of his quizzes or something how do you meet someone on bebo she liked this fucking profile skin yeah that's mad yeah and then they only just got married yeah i've heard so many shagging stories about him that he's just like he's got a lot of what are referred to as sugar babies in dublin especially where it's like come around they shag and in the morning he's gone but there's some cash for them in the bathroom sort of vibe.
29:46I guess they came up together though, him and his wife. So maybe there's just some sort of agreement that if he keeps it kept. Someone else messaged saying that basically that Connor was at an afters and there was this transgender woman who's like mid transition. So from male to female. But with penis. And had tits, but still a penis. Yeah. And apparently - You call that pre-op. Connor got really, yeah, pre-op, yeah. And Connor got really fucking gacked up and just like quite fucking obsessed. this trans girl and in the end was basically like I have to fucking shag you and they shagged yeah apparently it's well known in certain parts yeah I could definitely see Connor getting just like mind blown by that do you reckon that one's real I think it's I can see it in him what I see it in him is and I think this explains a lot of his personality is like he's basically a dopamine addict you know this thing of like he had it from fighting it was like this fucking amazing source of rush and then he's lost it the coke's kind of replaced it the shagging's replaced it you can kind of tell with both coke and shagging he's insatiable yeah yeah and so then you need like new highs yeah and so you start trans yeah everything everything that's my theory and he's also trying new things in the ring as well because beautiful because he's trying to he's crossing disciplines yeah he challenges crossing disciplines
31:14breaking new ground yeah yeah yeah he's uh he's uh breaking breaking new new territories uh because he's campaigning all the while for a boxing match with floyd mayweather um there's a lot of build-up to this a lot back and forth a lot of bravado from both both of them in the press and they finally agree to fight on the 26th of august 2017 and there's a big publicity tour of this. Conor's on top form, brands the promoter a weasel and a fucking bitch, accuses him of cutting his mic during press conferences apparently to favor Mayweather. He also obviously comes out for Floyd. We've got a clip of it here.
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31:57He's 40! You're 40 years of age! Dress your f***ing age! Carrying a school bag on stage! What are you doing with a school bag on stage? You can't even read.
32:1340 years old carrying a school bag. How many fans there are there? You believe in yourself like you say you believe in yourself. Bitch, your whole fight check, you.
32:27No problem. Send a contract here. It's done. So Conor McGregor's brought, it is a school bag, but it's like snakeskin. And it's Phil, you know how Conor McGregor always, sorry, Floyd Mayweather always has stacks of cash, but apparently his trick is it's only a hundred dollar bill on the top and the bottom. And then the middle of the stack is single dollar bills. Yeah. Cause his whole thing is like, I'm a billionaire, but we need to do an episode on Floyd Mayweather. But like Floyd Mayweather claims to be a billionaire, but last time he visited the UK, he did a public appearance opening a roller disco in Shepherd's Bush.
33:01You don't do that if you're a billionaire. I'm sorry. Carl Riff is he sells cameos he sells cameos for like 30 quid yeah we're at 27 I think he's the only billionaire I know that sells his cameos on cameos for 27 what roller discos there in Shepherd's Bush yeah see you there mate yeah I'm not a big Floyd Mayweather fan but even I watched this fight because it was like it was boxing yeah I mean quite punchy for him excuse the pun to go like cross discipline with probably the best boxer because Floyd Mayweather was still fucking good you know now people do it but it's like yeah like mike tyson doing ganu for um tyson fury that was probably the most yeah that was pretty brave it's just it's a payday yeah they saw like um ufc mma has just taken off so much the amounts of money that are in it connor's like the biggest fighting star yeah he's gonna it's gonna be the biggest pass but he must lose a bit of respect for the other fighters that he's in ufc because he's like you know you're going over you're taking your payday and you're just like left.
34:00But is he though? Because I think in UFC, in MMA, like it's all about being a master of all these different fighting disciplines. So if you can go into like probably the highest profile one of all and beat like a legend. Also it was good for that. It raised the profile of UFC. They probably all make money out of it. Yeah. 100 mil as well. Is that how much he made? Colin makes 100 million. Unfortunately, he can't deliver on it in the ring and he does lose by technical knockout in the 10th round. It's not bad. But 100 million he made from it. so i think he'll i think he'll take that yeah after that though he he does go back to mma uh but by this point he's he's just unhinged yeah money the money the money has gone to his head and um he's just he's he's like his ego is so through the roof and he's so like used to being the center of attention that he's just he's out of control really uh november 2017 a friend of his charlie Ward makes his debut at Bellator 187 in Dublin and he does well he knocks out John Redmond his opponent in the first round at which point Conor McGregor vaults over the walls of the cage to celebrate with with uh with Charlie and all hell breaks loose
35:14here he comes
35:24that's really good the security like about to stop him and then realize it's him Conor McGregor it's also just a bit embarrassing like just let let the kid out because the ref the ref is like obviously like what the fuck are you doing trying to drag him away and the fight hadn't been declared over was really as soon as Connor saw the knockout he jumped into the ring but like it caused chaos if you keep the clip rolling it all kicks off
35:54so I'm trying to fight you should try to fight the ref have his moment in the limelight yeah he has ruined that it's a bit much you want the attention yeah yeah this is coke he's trying to scrap the ref he's definitely hammered or something isn't he yeah he looks a bit all of a sudden Conor McGregor going after the referee yeah he's completely ruined yeah he's turned a nice thing into a horrible thing yeah he'd be fuming at some point he he like the fight commissioner comes in to try and just like calm the situation down and Conor just slaps him in the face climbs up afterwards onto the the walls of the cage he's like straddling it it's like he won the fight it's like get come on get out there let Charlie I think he's made the transition now.
36:41The mask has slipped and he's a villain now. Yeah. I think this is... Yeah, yeah, he's got it. So, obviously, the organisers of this fight are pretty livid at Connor ruining their spectacle and they release this angry statement the next day where they accuse him of assaulting their staff. But again, surely it's quite good for... I think it's probably... What do you mean? He's in for promotion? Yeah, yeah. I guess they've got to play the game. To be fair, it's not his only crime that year because in November 2017, he's convicted for speeding. the story I told you about the fine so he was doing 98 miles an hour he pleads guilty and he gives like a quite frank apology to the judge although I'm not sure he means it because straight afterwards there's a video of him in the car park of the courtroom and he's like all the press around him and he just he's getting into his like Lamborghini and just goes come and get me and speeds away what a motor look at that motor it's only 1.5 Connor oh look at his crew Fucking hell Look at the car Batman doors
37:52Is he driving? Yeah he's driving How's he allowed?
38:00It's like you've just been dumb for speeding And you're speeding out of the courtroom Come and get me he just doesn't give a fuck at this point but he's a massive star now he's hanging out, I was looking through all his celeb mates in this era, it's like Richard Branson Rihanna, Irina Sheik he's Vladimir Putin's personal guest at the World Cup final in 2018 that is fucking random they like sit in a box eating dinner together UFC's massive in Russia isn't it yeah they love that shit don't they for them it's almost a bit soft in Russia isn't it like bignocle shit remember those from that the build up to that World Cup those hooligan camps do you ever see the documentary about it where they train yeah where they were training to like fight English fans who I think English fans had sort of lost that reputation by that point these Russian fans are gay they've watched videos from the 80s they're expecting to fight these like hard and hooligans it was just us like fat blokes drinking pints in the sun yeah they're all like grandfathers now and they're like I don't see that.
39:04But yeah, I guess he has that vibe of someone who'd be mates with Putin, doesn't he? Yeah. But anyway, maybe that life is starting to distract him a bit, this whole like celeb world. I guess you just don't have the fire for it once you've got all that money. Well, I guess I suppose like Ronaldo stayed at the top. That's also impressive, I think. Yeah, yeah, yeah. As much as he's a twat. Yeah. But like, you know, I swear I heard something like no one's ever made a number one album after having their own recording studio put in their house or something insane like that. As soon as you've got the money to do everything like you can, you just like the fire.
39:40And he's basically not fighting, at which point he's stripped of his title. You know, it just expires in April 2018. And the belt is taken instead by Khabib Nurmagomedov. Practiced this so many times. And the belt is taken instead by Khabib Nurmagomedov. Thank you. won't be saying that surname ever again. Khabib. So he's got the belt and he's like a formidable guy who's also got this insane UFC record. He's actually reaching the end of his career. But Conor challenges him. And this is UFC's biggest ever fight. Like the two, you've got this veteran who's taking the title who's like a master of his craft.
40:22Very dedicated, like monk-like guy. And Khabib. And Khabib. And Khabib. No, I'm a good one. and Conor McGregor, who's like pretty off the rails by this point. You can see that the gear and the booze is taking hold. What could possibly go wrong? Well, you'll have to find out in part two, because on that bombshell, we have reached the end of part one. Conor McGregor is riding high. He's UFC's biggest draw, shagging left, right, and center. But it's all about to turn very, very ugly, because he's about to embrace his coked up unhinged psychopath era. So join us in part two when Connor fires out dick pics to porn stars.
41:08He's proven to be a rapist in court, terrorizes everyone from Bakaio Saka to teenage boys, does ayahuasca in the jungle and much, much more. There is a lot in part two, a lot of fucking drama. I'd say part two, I don't think there's any UFC in it. No. this is when he goes full scumbag yeah lots of coke it's more up we've done the boring bit I don't have to pretend to know what an octagon and a featherweight is what a technical knockout is so you can join us for that in part 2 we'll be there if we survive the intervening week yeah if we get a knock on the door yeah I'll be a long week looking over my shoulder or if you don't want to wait a whole week then you can listen to it or watch it right now by joining our Patreon for just£3.60 a month.
42:01You can be a member of the Patreon and yeah, you'll get part two instantly. You'll get Extra Shot every week where we run down the funniest stories in sport. Go to patreon.com forward slash Upshot Towers. Hopefully we'll see you over there. Otherwise, join us next week for part two. Now, JP, where is my coffee?
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From the publisher
Conor McGregor was once considered a combat genius who ranked alongside Sun Tzu, Bruce Lee and Fionn mac Cumhaill.
But then came the cocaine, convictions and carnage.
As his mask slipped, the unhinged Irishmen turned into a frothing beast, smashing up buses, punching grandads and peppering popstars with dick pics.
From ayahuasca in the jungle to shagging at funerals, this is the story of Conor McGregor…
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Links from the episode:
Pocketwatch: youtube.com/watch?v=MJl-O2KYYHU&ab_channel=ClippedMMA
Crocodile walk: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=818213015007557
Taking the piss out of Uriah Faber: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=yJRJEvFU3Ac&ab_channel=UFC
Forces translator to tell Jose Aldo he’s his daddy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YezMl2zi5Gs
Red panty night: https://youtu.be/BV57_OEDU1s?si=jDhSf3T0vNiV1ZtB&t=28
Taking the piss out of Nate Diaz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6wn99sp4Tc
Apologise to absolutely nobody: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1239067553130795
After party in a tree: https://www.reddit.com/r/ufc/comments/cqvb44/coked_up_conor_enjoying_an_after_party_in_a_tree/
Floyd Mayweather: https://youtu.be/UiPlPFzFkDo?si=SiHo7nyxYEq_Id2v&t=201
Ruins friend’s victory by jumping into the octagon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXx8WQPjYpo
Speeding out of car park: https://x.com/rtenews/status/936233874815897600
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