'Maybe his image is not as strong as it was' - Bruce Buffer looks at what's ahead for Conor McGregor
Bruce Buffer believes Conor McGregor's image is probably not as strong as it was at the peak of the Irishman's career, but he can still maintain his status in the combat sports world by making the right choices in his fighting career.
In a February 2021 interview with Russian sports outlet RT Sports, the UFC announcer shared his thoughts upon being asked if he thinks McGregor still enjoys the level of stardom he once did following the Dustin Poirier loss.
"I think maybe his image is not as peaked and strong as it was at one time because it's very hard to maintain that. Especially when you are in the sports or entertainment business. I mean how many movie stars stay on top? How many sports stars stay on top," Bruce Buffer said.
Elaborating on his thoughts further, Bruce Buffer indicated that making clever use of his popularity in fighting and other business ventures can aid Conor McGregor maintain his success and superstardom without necessarily competing against his peers the way he once did.
"It's all about how he markets himself and the decisions he (Conor McGregor) makes but he's lucky to be in the high plateau situation that he can feed it by doing what he should do properly. He can maintain this... even when he's not fighting. He's got a very strong brand considering what he's done... But he better watch out for the time because there's time out there too,'I plan on surpassing all the sales figures that has been done... Let everybody else do what they're doing. It's not about competition. It's just about success," Bruce Buffer said.
Could the Nate Diaz way be more feasible for Conor McGregor's fighting career?
Every fighter's rise through the ranks and reign at the top is followed by plateau and eventual decline. A loss to a highly credible opponent like Dustin Poirier should not be regarded as a signal of Conor McGregor's decline. But the lightweight division witnesses an onslaught of young emerging talent more frequently than other divisions. Going after the lightweight title is a lot more difficult for the former two-division champion than it was at the time of his ascent.
But Conor McGregor is still the biggest draw in the UFC who can pursue high-profile fights without title implications and keep his superstardom intact without hurting his legacy by going against younger and hungrier fighters intent on capturing the UFC gold. His rival Nate Diaz has successfully done it in the past few years, and there is no reason to believe that fans would not want to tune in to watch the Notorious One fight.
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