"He has such a booming voice" - John Kavanagh describes what Conor McGregor is like as a cornerman
Straight Blast Gym (SBG) head coach John Kavanagh detailed his experience of having Conor McGregor as an honorary cornerman back in February.
McGregor was in the audience for Sinead Kavanagh's featherweight fight against Leah McCourt at Bellator 275 in Dublin. The SBG product went on to win the fight via unanimous decision.
Speaking on Blockasset's BLOCKPARTY podcast, the 45-year-old hilariously described 'Notorious' as being so loud in the audience that it was effectively like having him as a cornerman:
"Conor's over my shoulder going crazy. It's like I get a free extra cornerman. He has such a booming voice, so we get an extra cornerman."
John Kavanagh and 'Notorious' have worked together since McGregor's MMA debut. The 33-year-old started his career in 2008 when he was just 18, with Kavanagh coaching and cornering him from the very beginning.
Despite McGregor's mixed 1-3 record in his last four appearances, the pair have remained loyal to one another as the former champ-champ's octagon return looms. The Dublin-born fighter is expected to make his UFC comeback later this year or early 2023 after recovering from a leg break injury sustained last year.
John Kavanagh has been with Conor McGregor every step of his rehabilitation and fans will be hoping the two find success in their next test in the octagon.
Catch John Kavanagh's interview here:
John Kavanagh details journey to Conor McGregor's first UFC title
Few fans will ever forget Conor McGregor's stunning 13-second KO over Jose Aldo in 2015. The moment launched 'Notorious' into stardom, but he first had to overcome Chad Mendes for the interim title.
McGregor and Aldo were originally set to fight in July 2015, before the Brazilian was forced to withdraw from the bout due to injury. On short notice, Chad Mendes stepped in and the fight was switched to an interim featherweight title bout.
John Kavanagh detailed the stunning run that saw McGregor go undefeated in 14 fights and capture the interim title before going on to defeat Jose Aldo later that same year.
In the same BLOCKPARTY interview, Kavanagh said:
"He's obviously a star... the fights themselves – there's no point if you're going out there and saying all these things and then you just keep losing... He had a great streak and it was topped off with a matchup that was maybe not the most favorable matchup on a very short notice change and he went out there and did the business... The walkout, Sinead O'Connor, the traveling Irish crowd, it was something really, really special."
Despite months of preparation for a specific opponent being thrown out of the window, 'Notorious' with Kavanagh's help found a way to defeat Mendes via TKO deep into the second round and keep his featherweight title dream alive.
The bout set up Conor McGregor and Aldo's rescheduled fight later that year and the rest, as they say, is history.