Those who tuned into the UFC 257 pre-fight press conference on Thursday expecting trash talk from Conor McGregor were left disappointed.
McGregor takes on Dustin Poirier in a lightweight headliner at UFC 257 which takes place Saturday night in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. The PPV event is exclusive to the
To further promote the event, a rare press conference featuring McGregor, Poirier, Dan Hooker and Michael Chandler took place. In the past, a McGregor press conference would be a can’t-miss event.
However, with the Irishman being more cordial towards Poirier compared to their first meeting back in 2014 as well as McGregor’s press conference with Donald Cerrone last year being a bit drab, many feared it would be the same case this time around. And that’s exactly what happened as fans started pining for the old, trash-talking McGregor.
But as far as his striking coach Owen Roddy is concerned, there is simply no need for it anymore.
“To be honest, when Conor was coming up, he had a point to prove as well,” Roddy told Submission Radio. “He believed in himself, we believed in him, but the rest of the world didn’t. See, and when you have this young kid, very confident, very sure of himself, a lot of people don’t like that, because we all want to be like that, but it’s very hard for you to come across that way. It takes somebody that’s really sure of themselves, really, really confident themselves.
“Conor was that person, he had a lot to prove, and he proved it all. He doesn’t need to prove anything to anybody anymore. He doesn’t have to say he’s gonna do this and do that. He’s done it all. Now, if somebody talks shit or if somebody’s saying shit, you’ll get that back, you’ll get that quick wit. That’s all still there. But it’s just, he doesn’t need to do it.
“And, the way the last fight went, there was a lot of respect between Conor and Cerrone. And there’s definitely mutual respect between Conor and Poirier. So, there’s no need for it. But rest assured, if Poirier was to come out and start giving Conor a lot of crap and if that’s the way it had have went, Conor would’ve been on top of him. Let’s just say that. But there’s no need. There’s no need for it. Both fighters respect each other, and they’re just gonna let their hands do that talking on Saturday night.”
Now if it was a certain Khabib Nurmagomedov opposite him, it would certainly be a different story.
