Thursday’s UFC press conference will be remembered for one thing – the kerfuffle that broke out during the Conor McGregor/Nate Diaz staredown.
But there was one more exchange that ought to be just as memorable as the trash-talking veneer so often utilised by McGregor disappeared for a brief moment.
McGregor, who loves nothing more than hyping himself up, took a moment to distance himself from the plentiful comparisons between himself and boxing legend Muhammad Ali.
The pair share a few similarities, primarily in their fight-selling abilities, but when one American reporter raised the comparison, ‘The Notorious’ politely thanked him but assured him that he could not accept the compliment.
“This is a question we get asked all the time,” McGregor said.
“I take inspiration and motivation from absolutely everything and anything, people chasing their dreams, putting their head down and working hard.
“For me, Muhammad Ali was probably the first combat sports star that I looked up to. I’d never seen anything like that and I was fascinated by him growing up but I’ve been shaped by many people.
“Thank you for that compliment. It’s a comparison that’s been thrown at me a few times but I cannot accept a comparison like that.
“Muhammad Ali is a special man. He did things that were unthinkable. He changed culture, period! But, again, I am honoured to even be put in that bracket by some people so thank you.”
