Conor McGregor is a retired professional boxer and Mixed Martial Art (MMA) artist from Ireland. He is widely known as the Notorious Mystic Mac and became a star in MMA after winning the Ultimate Fighting Featherweight and lightweight Championship titles. McGregor not only won but also broke the previous records held in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), thus becoming the first fighter to win two weight divisions’ titles concurrently.
He has also captioned 4 out of the 6 highest selling Pay-Per-View events in UFC. As a result, he became the largest pay-per-view draw in the history of Mixed Martial Arts. If these achievements sound like too much already, we’re only getting started. Get ready to have your mind blown. This article shows you the progression of Conor McGregor’s incredible twelve-year career alongside the laurels he’s gathered in that short time. But first, a backstory would help.
Conor McGregor Went From Plumbing to the Boxing
McGregor was born on July 14, 1988, in the town of Crumlin, Dublin, Ireland, into the family of Margaret and Tony McGregor. He attended Gaelscoil and Gealcholaiste for her basic and higher education. Growing up, McGregor had an ardent desire for everything sports. However, he majored in football. In 2000, that passion got re-channeled into boxing, where he fought in his native town boxing club- Crumlin boxing club.
Six years later, he joined his parents when they moved to Lucan, in Dublin, Ireland. While there, he received training to become a plumber. A vocation that led to the opportunity to meet future UFC fighter, Tom Egan. They began training together, and that no-ordinary friendship spurred the beginning of McGregor’s career as a Mixed Martial Artist.
He Made His Amateur MMA Debut in 2007
Although he took his first step in 2006, it was in February 2007 that McGregor made his Mixed Martial Arts debut in an amateur fight for the Irish Ring of Truth Promotion in Dublin, Ireland. During the match, he defeated Kerian Campbell through technical knockout in the first round to clinch the title. This further raised his profile as a professional boxer and got him more visible on the professional map. McGregor was signed by the Irish Cage of Truth Promotion.
Conor McGregor’s startling success might come as a surprise to many, but for those who know the ropes, there is no surprise at all, especially when you consider his weight, height, and other vital metrics. On a closer look, McGregor has a fitting stature for a Mixed Martial Artist. His weight is considerably higher than 155 lbs (70 kg) and is perfect for his height of 5 feet 9 inches (175 cm).
His incredible physique serves as an advantage to him in the ring, where he mostly fights in the featherweight (145 pounds) and lightweight (155 pounds) divisions. Because of his eagerness to fight in a welterweight contest, he beefed up his weight to 170 pounds. The move would prove instrumental to his career success.
Except For His Mom, McGregor Would Have Switched Lanes
In March 2008, McGregor recorded his first MMA victory as a lightweight against Gary Morris. He also defeated Mo Taylor but was knocked down by Artemij Sitenkov in his featherweight debut. However, he won his second match against Stephen Bailey. One would expect this victory to motivate him, but the opposite happened. After beating Bailey, McGregor started making moves to another career. To stop him in his tracks, his mother sought the help of a coach her McGregor respects so much, John Kavanagh. It worked. The next few years would be the most epochal periods of his career.
McGregor went on to beat other renowned fighters such as Conor Dillon, Joseph Duffy, and eventually recorded an 8-fight winning streak in 2011 and 2012. That period, he won the CWFC Featherweight and Lightweight championships, thereby emerging the first professional mixed martial artist from Europe to hold titles in two divisions at the same time. The following year, he was honored as the Irish Pro Fighter of the Year.
Conor McGregor Joined UFC Based on Popular Demand
In February 2013, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) signed Conor McGregor to a multi-fight contract. That made him the second Irish fighter to compete for the establishment after Tom Egan. But the unique circumstances leading to this new deal is worthy of note.
Days before the official announcement, UFC president Dana White was visiting Dublin, Ireland on the invitation of Trinity College to receive a Gold Medal of Honorary Patronage. He did not expect the avalanche of requests to sign McGregor to the UFC. White obliged. After meeting with McGregor, and discussing with the CEO of UFC, Lorenzo Fertitta, McGregor was brought on board a few days later.
Two months after that, McGregor fought his UFC debut match against Marcus Brimage and won. The victory earned him a “Knockout of the Night” award. He later clinched the Ultimate Fighting Championship for the Featherweight and Lightweight divisions in 2013. The following year, he was honored as the Irish Pro Fighter of the Year.
He Was Among Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Persons of the Year 2017
In 2015, Conor McGregor again won the Irish pro Fighter and the Fighter of the Year Awards. He also won the ESPN and Fox Sports Fighter of the Year in 2015. In the same year, he was named as winner of the VIP Style Award as Ireland’s most stylish man. 2016 saw him claim Fox Sports Fighter of the year again. He was also International Fighter of the Year for 2014 and 2015, at the World MMA Awards.
Put all these laurels together, and it becomes no surprise that Conor McGregor was mentioned in Time Magazine’s Top 100 Most Influential People for 2017. So far, McGregor has received at least 55 awards in his fighting career. On June 6, 2020, after twelve years in action, he announced his retirement from professional boxing.
Although the news came as a shock to many of his fans and followers, it only confirmed hints the Mixed Martial Artist had given the year prior. It would be recalled that McGregor made waves in 2017, following his epic standoff with the undefeated boxer, Floyd Mayweather. The fight saw the two athlete carting home a total of over $410 million, with McGregor taking $130 million. With so much money made, there’s been a lot of media debate as to how much his net worth now reads. Let’s clear the air on that.
He Remains One of the Richest Men in Ireland
As of this writing, Conor Mcgregor has a net worth of $120 million. This includes the rough payout sum of about $130 million from his famous boxing fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr and $50 million from his fight with Khabib.
He now appears as number 16 and 53 on Forbes’ Celebrity 100 and The World’s Highest-Paid Athletes lists. Only two years earlier, in January 2018, the fighter appeared for the first time on Ireland’s Sunday Independent rich list, with his net worth estimated at a whopping $170 million. That made him the 111th richest citizen of his country. But he doesn’t hold all that fortune for anything, there are people in the MMA’s life that makes all that money worthwhile. Who are they?
McGregor Has a Son With Dee Devlin
Conor McGregor has been with his current partner, Dee Devlin, since 2008. They met that year at a night when McGregor’s mixed martial arts career was in its infancy. Like her partner, Devlin is also from Dublin and has stood by McGregor’s side throughout his early days, especially the roughest stages of his career.
When Mcgregor went international, Devlin left her job as a secretary to give him the full support he needed. As McGregor puts it, Devlin has been of utmost support to him and she has been a prominent member of his team.
The couple welcomed their first child, Conor Jack McGregor Jr., on May 5, 2017. Barely two years later, they welcomed their second child, a girl they christened Croia, born on January 2, 2019. Conor Mcgregor understands Irish and speaks it fluently. He also has two sisters named Aoife and Erin.
