HE HAS MADE as many enemies as friends since signing for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, but Conor McGregor certainly has an ally in the shape of a man who’s also looking to get his hands on championship gold at UFC 189.
McGregor versus Chad Mendes for the interim featherweight title will headline the Las Vegas card on 11 July, while Rory MacDonald will be aiming to dethrone welterweight champion Robbie Lawler in the co-main event.
With all the focus on McGregor, the 170lbs title bout has subsequently flown under the radar. However, that’s not something MacDonald has a problem with.
Unlike Ricardo Lamas and several other UFC fighters who have expressed their belief that McGregor is bad for the sport, MacDonald is full of admiration for the Irishman and the manner in which he goes about his business.
“Conor’s good for the sport,” MacDonald said. “He’s making us all more money… not just himself. There’s more attention on the sport, on this pay-per-view and it’s good for everyone, in my opinion.”
Those sentiments were echoed by MacDonald’s opponent Lawler, who’s been content to allow McGregor to hog the limelight while he concentrates on making a successful first defence of his title.
Lawler said: “Conor is doing a great job of promoting the fight, Mendes is coming in to fill in and I think it’s going to be a good fight. But I’m not too worried about that stuff.
“I concentrate on myself, I concentrate on getting my body stronger, I concentrate on getting my mind stronger so that I can go in there and put a show on 11 July and beat somebody up.”
