‘Cowboy’ even did a little jig to prove he was in good shape.
Days out from his UFC 246 main event against Conor McGregor, Donald Cerrone was forced to answer some questions on his readiness to fight ‘The Notorious’.
In the second of the UFC’s ‘Embedded’ episodes, cameras caught Cerrone limping as he headed for a night out with friends at Freemont in Las Vegas. The 34-year-old did appear to be walking quite stiffly as himself and his colleagues headed towards what he jokingly referred to a ‘red-neck central’.
The video sparked fears that Cerrone could be carrying a bad leg injury into his headliner against McGregor. However, at a UFC 246 media day at the promotion’s Performance Institute, ‘Cowboy’ dismissed such concerns and told reporters:
“I knew that was going to come up. You people are good!
“What if I walk with a draw, you know? Or maybe I stepped on Lego. I’ve got a kid now.
“No, I’m good [dancing on the spot]. I just kicked a pad funny. It’s just a funny, nothing.”
Cerrone insisted that his training camp has been going well and that he has been able to put in the hard work over recent weeks. The final few days before a fight are all about finessing and fine-tuning before the big bout.
In another interview, with Brett Okamoto of ESPN, Cerrone spoke about his ability to push his body through the pain barrier. “When it’s time,” he said, “and everything is against you and it is time to quit, you have to tell yourself, ‘Not today motherf*****’.”
Cerrone is coming off two stoppage loses, to Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje, but holds a number of impressive UFC records, including most fights, wins and fight-night bonuses.
McGregor is confident that he will get his first UFC win in 2016 over Cerrone, however, and told TSN that he is seeking to ‘accumulate rounds’. He will not be in a hurry, he says, but he is predicting a knock-out win.
