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Conor McGregor is one of the most polarizing personalities in the UFC. The Irishman is often perceived as disrespectful towards and dismissive of his opponents ahead of a fight.
The Notorious One is known for using trash talk as a weapon to promote his fights and affect his opponents' psyche. McGregor has previously managed to get under most of his opponents' skin, making fair use of his gift of the gab. However, time and again, the Irishman has clarified that he uses trash talk to play mind games with his opponent and there's no personal animosity involved.
Several times after his fights, Conor McGregor was viewed as respectful to his opponents, both in victory and defeat. In his own words, the former two-division champion is "Cocky in prediction, confident in preparation, but always humble in victory or defeat."
Let's take a look at some of Conor McGregor's greatest sportsmanship moments inside and outside the octagon.
1) When Conor McGregor pledged $500,000 to Dustin Poirier's charity
Conor McGregor will take on former foe Dustin Poirier in the headliner of UFC 257 on January 23. However, ahead of the rematch, one thing's for sure - there is no bad blood between the fighters.
Earlier this year, McGregor tried to set up an exhibition sparring match with Poirier and promised to donate a sum of $500,000 to Poirier's Good Fight Foundation charity. However, the exhibition sparring match couldn't come to fruition as Dana White booked McGregor and Poirier to fight each other inside the octagon.
While announcing that he has signed for the fight, Conor McGregor reaffirmed that he will still go ahead and donate $500,000 to Poirier's charity in an honourable sportsmanlike gesture.
2) When The Notorious One congratulated Khabib Nurmagomedov on his retirement
Conor McGregor surprised many people when he seemingly buried the hatchet between himself and arch-rival Khabib Nurmagomedov following the latter's retirement in the aftermath of UFC 254.
After successfully defending his title against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254, Nurmagomedov shocked the world by announcing his retirement from MMA. He said that he doesn't wish to continue fighting in the absence of his late father and trainer Abdulmanap.
Conor McGregor took to Twitter to congratulate Khabib Nurmagomedov on his retirement and offered condolences for the unfortunate passing of the Russian's father.
Good performance @TeamKhabib. I will carry on. Respect and condolences on your father again also. To you and family. Yours sincerely, The McGregors.
3) When McGregor embraced Nate Diaz following their second fight
The bad blood between Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz was pretty visible during their heated interactions at press-conferences ahead of both their first and second fights.
The pair fought each other twice, once at UFC 196 and again at UFC 202. While Nate won the first one via submission, Conor McGregor put up a brilliant show in the rematch, clinching the fight via unanimous decision.
In the immediate aftermath of the second fight, which was a back and forth slugfest, Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz embraced each other in a brilliant display of mutual respect. They congratulated each other on the fantastic performance and exchanged some kind words.
"Great fight, brother. Great fu**ing fight. You're a little Mexican warrior. You are a soldier", said McGregor after the fight, praising Diaz for bringing the fight to him. In the post-fight press conference, McGregor even praised Diaz for possessing the ability to sustain unbelievable damage and still carry on.
4) When he embraced Donald Cerrone's grandmother at UFC 246
We saw a different Conor McGregor ahead of his fight against Donald Cerrone at UFC 246. The Notorious One looked like a changed man, refusing to talk trash to his opponent. McGregor even praised Cerrone for being a veteran of the sport and showed tremendous respect to 'Cowboy' heading into the fight.
The fight went down in the blink of an eye as Conor McGregor bulldozed through Cerrone in 40 seconds, picking up an impressive TKO win on his return to the octagon. Following the fight, McGregor held Cerrone's grandmother Jerry in a warm embrace, telling her how much he respects her and her grandson.
It was a heartwarming moment for everyone who witnessed the scene as Jerry Cerrone hugged the man who had just broken her grandson's nose inside the cage. In an interview with MMA Junkie, McGregor mentioned how honored he felt to have met her and shared the cage with the man she raised.
"She’s just a phenomenal woman, that lady,” McGregor told MMA Junkie. “She’s there from the first fight of the night to the final fight of the night. Even after the bout, she came over and showed me respect. I showed her respect, and it was great to finally meet her. Donald’s fought so much, and that lady is there from the start of the fight to the finish. What a lady. What a man she’s raised. I’m very, very, very honored to share the cage with Donald."
5) When McGregor was respectful to Jose Aldo following UFC 194
Conor McGregor was in a war state of mind ahead of his fight against Jose Aldo at UFC 194. McGregor was the interim champ when he challenged Aldo for the featherweight title. In the press conferences ahead of the battle, the Irishman did everything possible to get under the Brazilian's skin, visibly irking him.
Come fight night, McGregor proved his mind games worked as an emotionally charged Aldo overextended himself trying to land a knockout blow on McGregor in the opening exchange. McGregor had prepared for this possibility, counter-punched with perfect timing, leaving Aldo out cold in just 13 seconds of the fight. Aldo lost his title even before he could realize it.
Following the fight, McGregor hugged Aldo and apologized to him for the way the conflict ended. He also assured him that they might rematch down the line. Even in the post-fight interview, the Irishman hailed Aldo as a great champion, ending their rivalry. This is what Conor McGregor said to Joe Rogan in the post-fight interview:
He's powerful and he's fast but precision beats power and timing beats speed. Honestly, I feel for Jose. He was a phenomenal champion. We deserved to go a little bit longer.
