Conor’s coach: This camp was radically different
Conor McGregor’s coach: This camp was radically different
SBGi founder and head coach for Conor McGregor John Kavanagh has a regular column for Ireland’s The42 that is must read if you are a hardcore MMA fan. In the latest, he says his reputation as a coach is on the line tonight in the UFC 202 McGregor vs. Nate Diaz rematch, and that a radically different approach will lead to a radically different fight ending.
There’s no comparing this training camp to any we have done previously. I can’t stress enough how different this has been. As many of you will probably already know, routine hasn’t been something you would have associated with Conor’s preparations in the past.
Anyone who knows about the history of SBG Ireland will be aware that we were always regarded as the last-minute gym — the guys who would be ready to step in at short notice. Our mentality reflected that so all you can do in those circumstances is try to get your skillset to such a high level that the opponent doesn’t matter.
I believe that worked well for us and the results were proof of that, but I also feel that when you’ve done that for so long, you can end up getting caught out against certain styles of opponent. This has provided us with an opportunity to experience the other method – of extreme gameplanning and being very opponent-orientated.
It’s been a new approach for me, and for us all. I’d describe it as doing an exam after seeing the questions on the teacher’s test sheet. I feel like we’re almost cheating going into this fight because we know what questions we’re going to face in the test.
In every other fight it’s been a fun approach because we’ve been figuring the guy out in the first round. With this one, I really feel like I can describe — technique by technique, round by round — what’s going to happen.
We’re ready for 25 minutes but I do believe that the cumulative damage will have become too much by the fourth round, resulting in Nate’s corner stopping the fight if the referee doesn’t do it before that.
This is a very important fight for Conor, but I also feel that my own reputation as a coach is at stake. This contest can be a bit of a game-changer for us all.
I firmly believe that Conor’s loss to Diaz earlier this year will turn out to be a significant turning point in his career, which will really stand to him as we embark on this next part of the journey and the next batch of fights, whether they’re at featherweight, lightweight or welterweight.