Daniel Cormier claims Conor McGregor's usual swagger was missing at UFC 257
Daniel Cormier claims that Conor McGregor did not have his usual swagger walking out for his fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 257.
'The Notorious' suffered the first knockout loss of his professional MMA career at the hands of Dustin Poirier last Saturday night in the main event of UFC 257. The much-hyped rematch of their 2014 bout ended with 'The Diamond' equaling the score, and there are already talks of a trilogy possibly happening.
Daniel Cormier, who was a live commentator at UFC 257, said to Ariel Helwani on the DC & Helwani show that he felt like Conor McGregor was not entirely himself in his latest fight - the usual "McGregor swagger" was missing in his body language. The former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion blamed the loose build-up of the fight for the same and said that Conor McGregor is one of those fighters who need to have the "edge" to motivate themselves.
"The build-up, I truly believe that some people need that edge. Do I think he needs to go as far as he went with the Khabib fight? No. That was too far. But I think some of those guys need that edge a little bit man. I think that for McGregor, he's showing a maturity about him that he may not have had before. But I think some of these guys need that edge..." said Daniel Cormier.
"I think that for Conor, he was so loose in the build-up that it allowed him to be so free. And I felt like walking out there, he looked like himself, right? But you could see a little bit less of that McGregor swagger as he walked to the octagon. He just didn't seem like the same guy."
Daniel Cormier advises Conor McGregor to not let go of the edge
In Daniel Cormier's opinion, it is okay to be "gracious in defeat" but the build-up needs to be different. He believes that in its absence, a fighter loses a certain part of themselves which might have been essential in winning the crucial bouts.
DC advises Conor McGregor and all other fighters who followed the same style to not leave that behind entirely.
"I think that maybe... you mature inside of your life, but you mature inside your mind and in the fight. Because those things that maybe didn't worry you before because you just were so fuzzy that you didn't care, now that there's not that fuzz to block out all the nervous emotion... Not even just Conor, I would advise a lot of those guys that went to the top of the mountain with that type of style, you can't truly just eliminate it all. You just can't. I'm sorry. I just think that you have to continue and have a little bit of that."
Despite what Daniel Cormier says, a lot of MMA fans are appreciating the new version of Conor McGregor, who has left behind his trash-talking days for now and is friendly and respectful towards his opponents ahead of the fight. Whether that went on to cost Conor McGregor his fight or not is a matter of debate. But his camaraderie with Dustin Poirier and before that with Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone has certainly won the hearts of his fans.