he remarkable rise of Irish UFC star Conor McGregor has gripped the sporting world, but his unremarkable beginnings from working-class Dublin differ from his millionaire “Mac Life” persona, and his ascent hasn’t always been seamless.
McGregor is every inch his “Notorious” moniker. The fast-talking, fast-punching Irishman entered the UFC as a whirlwind of bravado that exhilarated crowds on both sides of the Atlantic. He is one of the most talked-about sportsmen of his generation. Chances are, if you haven’t seen him fight, you’ve heard the stories. The measure of his personality is such that it permeates even the lives of those uninterested in his craft.
Some see him as a walking soundbite, a showman that has become a crossover star. But the evolution of Conor McGregor has been much more complex. Before the Instagrammed Rolls Royces and the custom-made David August suits, before he became the first MMA fighter to make Forbes’ list of top 100 highest-paid athletes, the McGregor whirlwind began as a whisper. – READ MORE