Conor McGregor is currently the most recognizable face in mixed martial arts and is sitting on top of the UFC world with the lightweight title belt. But “The Notorious,” like many champions, came from modest beginnings.
Exactly six years ago Sunday, McGregor was fighting at Immortal Fighting Championship 4 in Letterkenny, Ireland, trying to claw his way to relevance with a mediocre 6-2 record.
His opponent that night was a fighter named Paddy Doherty, and ol’ Paddy’s evening ended rather quickly after McGregor knocked him out faster than it takes to run the 40-yard dash.
That whole fight lasted four seconds. Doherty overextended with a right before Conor knocked him out with a left hook. Game. Set. Match.
If that finish looks familiar, it’s because McGregor ended Jose Aldo’s night exactly the same way to win the UFC featherweight belt at UFC 194, in a venue that didn’t look like the downstairs of a really sketchy nightclub that’s having a special $2 deal on Bud Light.
It really is eerie just how similar both knockouts are. And what’s even more crazy is that McGregor had a 16-second knockout a month prior to his four-second KO.
In fact, six of his first seven victories were first-round knockouts. McGregor’s only win that lasted longer than a round during that span was his professional debut in 2008 — a second-round knockout.
With that kind of dominance early in his career, it’s not hard to see why McGregor got to where he is today.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
