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Conor McGregor has become one of the most recognizable athletes in the world over the last year of two, and his net worth has sky rocketed because of it.
Conor Anthony McGregor is an Irish mixed martial artist who competes in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and now plans to also fight at lightweight and welterweight. He is the current UFC Featherweight Champion, and the former Cage Warriors Featherweight and Lightweight Champion. As of 22 February 2016, he is No. 3 in the official UFC pound-for-pound rankings and ranked as the No. 1 featherweight and No. 5 pound-for-pound fighter in the world by Sherdog. McGregor will fight Nate Diaz at UFC 196 on March 5, 2016.
Conor McGregor Net Worth as of 2019: $115 Million
But how did an Irish MMA fighter become one of the most recognizable athletes in the world? We take a look back.
2007
On February 17, 2007, at the age of 18, McGregor made his mixed martial arts debut, in an amateur fight against Ciaran Campbell for the Irish Ring of Truth promotion in Dublin. He was victorious via technical knockout (TKO) in the first round. Following the fight, he turned professional and was signed by the Irish Cage of Truth promotion.
2008-2011
In 2008, he began training at the Straight Blast Gym in Dublin under John Kavanagh.
On March 9, 2008, aged 19, McGregor made his professional MMA debut at Cage of Truth 2, defeating Gary Morris with a second-round TKO.
Beginning in 2011, McGregor started an undefeated streak of 14 wins, consisting of one judges’ decision, one submission, and twelve knockouts/technical knockouts (nine occurring in the first round). During this period McGregor produced one of the fastest recorded knockouts in MMA, ending a fight in four seconds at Immortal Fighting Championship in Letterkenny, Ireland.
2012
In 2012, McGregor won both the CWFC Featherweight and Lightweight titles, making him the first European professional MMA fighter to hold titles in two divisions at the same time.
2013
The UFC’s president Dana White traveled to Dublin in early February 2013 to receive a Gold Medal of Honorary Patronage from Trinity College’s Philosophical Society and was inundated with requests to sign McGregor. The two later met in Dublin and White was so impressed with what he saw that he contacted UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta and they subsequently offered McGregor contract days later.
In February 2013, the UFC announced that they had signed McGregor to a multi-fight contract. In joining, McGregor became only the second fighter from Ireland to compete for the company, following fellow SBG fighter Tom Egan.
On April 6, 2013, McGregor made his UFC debut against Marcus Brimage on the preliminary card of UFC on Fuel TV: Mousasi vs. Latifi.He was successful in his first bout, winning via TKO just over a minute into the first round. The win also earned McGregor his first Knockout of the Night Award.
McGregor was expected to face Andy Ogle on August 17, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 26 but Ogle pulled out of the bout citing an injury and was replaced by Max Holloway. McGregor won the fight by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26). Following the bout with Holloway, an MRI scan revealed that McGregor had torn his anterior cruciate ligament during the bout and would require surgery, keeping him out of action for up to ten months.
2014
In March 2014, the events surrounding McGregor’s fight with Holloway were the main focus of a documentary by Motive Television and SevereMMA.com for Raidió Teilifís Éireann. McGregor was expected to face Cole Miller on 19 July 2014 at UFC Fight Night 46. However, Miller pulled out of the bout citing a thumb injury and was replaced by Diego Brandão. McGregor won the fight via TKO in the first round. The win earned McGregor his first Performance of the Night Award.
McGregor faced Dustin Poirier on September 27, 2014 at UFC 178 After a build-up filled with arguments and hostility between the two, McGregor won the fight via first round TKO, making him the first man to finish Poirier via KO/TKO. The win earned McGregor his second straight Performance of the Night Award.
2015
McGregor faced Dennis Siver on 18 January 2015 at UFC Fight Night 59. McGregor dominated his opponent, winning the one-sided fight via TKO in the second round. The win also earned McGregor his third straight Performance of the Night Award. After the fight, McGregor jumped over the cage and confronted the UFC Featherweight Champion José Aldo.
McGregor was expected to face former champion Aldo on July 11, 2015 at UFC 189 for the undisputed UFC Featherweight Championship. However, in the days leading up to the fight, Aldo pulled out of the bout because of a rib injury he had sustained in training. McGregor remained on the card and faced UFC ranked No. 1 contender Chad Mendes for the interim championship. The victory extended McGregor’s Performance of the Night Award streak to four, while the card drew a record $7.2 million gate and was a new United States record for mixed martial arts.
On December 12, 2015, at UFC 194, McGregor defeated Aldo by knockout, thereby unifying the title in the featherweight division and became the only European male to win a UFC Championship by beating the champion. he bout lasted 13 seconds, the fastest finish in any UFC title fight.
2016-2017
McGregor was expected to face UFC Lightweight Champion Rafael dos Anjos on March 5, 2016 at UFC 196 in an attempt to become the first UFC dual-weight champion. It was announced on February 23 that dos Anjos withdrew from the fight after breaking his foot a few days before. McGregor will now face Nate Diaz in a welterweight bout.
On November 12 at UFC 205, McGregor defeated Alvarez by second-round knockout to win the UFC Lightweight Championship and become the first simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history.
McGregor is rumored to make a cameo appearance on the upcoming season of Game Of Thrones.
With McGregor’s, and thee UFC’s popularity only rising, look for his net worth to continue to rapidly grow.
2018
Rumours continue to spark concerning Conor McGregor’s return to the Octagon ring as he hopes to grab the headlines once again.
2019
Conor McGregor expressed his wish to go to Tokyo to face Tenshin Nasukawa in a Mixed Martial Arts exhibition “before this summer” on Twitter.
