5 UFC fighters who have mastered the art of selling a fight
The UFC is all about finding out who the best fighters in the world are. But at its heart, it is also classic prize-fighting, and is essentially about who can get the most people to watch their fights.
Some of the UFC’s top fighters clearly understand that the art of selling a fight is just as important as actually having fighting skills inside the octagon, and have used that art to the best of their ability.
While trash-talk has been around for years now, sometimes selling a fight doesn’t simply involve antagonising an opponent. Former UFC welterweight king Georges St-Pierre, for instance, was always respectful – but sold his fights on the premise that each of his opponents would be his toughest.
On that note, here's a look at five UFC fighters who have mastered the art of selling a fight.
#5 Conor McGregor – former UFC featherweight & lightweight champion
The proof that Conor McGregor knows exactly how to sell a fight can be seen by the fact that every time he steps into the octagon, millions of people are willing to part with their money to see it.
‘The Notorious’ has headlined the top five best-selling pay-per-views in UFC history, drawing untold millions of dollars for both himself and the UFC. His fights with the likes of Dustin Poirier, Nate Diaz and Khabib Nurmagomedov are all part of the UFC’s overarching narrative.
The brash Irishman showed he wasn’t afraid to ruffle feathers from the moment he arrived in the UFC in 2013, as he began to talk trash about practically the whole featherweight roster. However, the key for McGregor was that most of his trash-talk centred on himself.
This meant that not only did fans begin to recognise him as a superstar – or a potential one – but also that his name was seemingly never far away from the lips of his possible UFC rivals. At that stage, everyone wanted to fight Conor McGregor.
And it’s also worth noting that while he now comes across as bitter at times, McGregor’s trash-talk back then was also very witty. An example of that is his infamous barb at Jeremy Stephens, endearing him to a large portion of the UFC fanbase.
So by the time ‘The Notorious’ had also proven his fighting skills with his wins over Chad Mendes and Jose Aldo – backing up every word – he was every inch the superstar he’d always claimed he would be.
These days, McGregor’s star power has largely transcended the UFC. He could probably draw a million pay-per-view buys against a nothing opponent without even saying a word. But judging on how quickly he turned his rivalry with Dustin Poirier into a personal one, he’s still the king when it comes to knowing exactly how to sell a fight.