August 16, 2016 will forever be a dark day in Irish sporting history.
On that day in Rio, Michael Conlan stepped into the ring to face Vladimir Nikitin in an Olympic quarter-final. Despite dominating the Russian for the duration of the fight, the judges gave Nikitn the unanimous decision victory, robbing Conlan of a second Olympic medal.
Nikitin was so badly beaten up from the Conlan bout that he was unable to continue in the competition. He withdrew before the semi-final because of injuries and took home a bronze medal.
Conlan’s expletive-laden interview with RTE directly after flipping the bird to the judges instantly became iconic.
"Fucking cheats" – Michael Conlan was understandably furious after being denied a second Olympic medal…https://t.co/mmgEZwq7D3
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) August 16, 2016
In broad daylight, Conlan’s dream had been snatched right out from under his nose. Everyone saw it happening and nobody could stop it. He experienced an intense form of helplessness that night that left him devastated and furious.
Not long after, another man making serious waves in combat sports reached out to him. As Conlan explained on a MayMac special edition of the MMA Hour, Conor McGregor got in touch with him after the controversy.
“He (McGregor) reached out and said, ‘Listen, fuck them.’ Sorry, excuse my language, but he said what he said.”
“He said, ‘Listen, this is what happens in sport. You know you won, everybody else who watched knew you won. Keep your head up, you’re going to be a world champion.'”
Conlan added that he was very grateful for the advice, especially considering the source. McGregor had become the biggest PPV draw in MMA history that year.
