Conor McGregor lashes back at Twitter users making fun of his 'little checks' while shadowboxing
Conor McGregor arrived at the UFC Apex center yesterday to begin filming this year's season of The Ultimate Fighter. 'The Notorious' has been on the sidelines since July 2021, when he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
Upon his arrival at the Apex center, McGregor was captured shadowboxing in the foyer of the building. The former two-division champion, known for his feral intensity, even performed several leg checks. The addition of leg checks was found humorous by fans on Twitter, who poked fun at the Irishman.
Conor McGregor responded to one fan in particular and labeled him a "novice" while warning potential opponents about the consequences of his leg checks. In a since-deleted tweet, 'The Notorious' wrote:
"Say what you want novices. If that is what's awaiting your low kick, you are in trouble."
See the tweet below:
Having KO'd Dustin Poirier in 2014 at UFC 178, Conor McGregor was defeated by 'The Diamond' in back-to-back fights in 2021. Their rematch took place at UFC 257, and Poirier KO'd the Irishman in round two. The main talking point following the fight was the effect that Poirier's leg kicks had on McGregor.
'The Notorious' had only competed in MMA twice in over three years prior to UFC 257. Speculation rose that his absence from the cage, combined with rumors of a boxing match with Manny Pacquiao, led to McGregor becoming flat-footed and susceptible to leg kicks.
But McGregor appears to have regained focus following his devastating injury against Poirier at UFC 264, and has become more aware of previous flaws.
Watch the full video of McGregor shadowboxing below:
Conor McGregor shadow boxing at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas ahead of #TUF31 filming.
https://t.co/dlNKRw3yET
Conor McGregor's coach compares Michael Chandler fight to previous bout against Chad Mendes
Conor McGregor has trained under the guidance of John Kavangh at SBG Ireland since 2008. Together, the pair have won everything there is to win in the sport, and then some.
'The Notorious' is set to take on Michael Chandler following the conclusion of TUF 31 in a thrilling clash, and Kavangh believes the matchup suits McGregor well.
@MikeChandlerMMA will be INSANE 
π½ππΌππππππ πππππππΎπ πππΎπππππ... π€©
The Ultimate Fighter followed by @TheNotoriousMMA π @MikeChandlerMMA will be INSANE π₯
#TUF31 https://t.co/Eulefow5wb
The world class coach recently broke down the matchup during an interview with Sean Sheehan on Sherdog.com. He compared McGregor's upcoming clash with Chandler to his fight against Chad Mendes at UFC 189.
'The Notorious' defeated Mendes to win the interim-featherweight title, and Kavanagh believes that 'Iron' presents a similar problem to 'Money'. Both men have an NCAA division 1 wrestling background and are short, stocky and powerful fighters.
Kavanagh said this during his interview with Sherdog:
"I think it could resemble a little bit the Mendes fight. Mendes is that style - blocky guy, big punches, big double leg [takedowns]... Conor has a good record against those kind of orthodox, stocky wrestlers with big overhand rights"
Watch the full interview below: