Conor McGregor has had enough of being an employee.
His historic second round TKO victory over lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez means he now holds two UFC belts simultaneously.
If his sporting achievements were not enough, the Dubliner’s star power helped UFC 205 beat the previous box office record for Madison Square Garden by $6 million.
Saturday night’s card is sure to mean he will be responsible for four of the biggest PPVs in the promotion’s history. While ‘The Notorious’ is comfortably the best paid UFC fighter, claiming he will earn ¢40m in 2016, he wants the new owners to recognise the contribution he has made in the three-and-a-half years since his UFC debut.
“Who owns the company now? People have shares in the company… celebrities. Conan O’Brien owns shares of the UFC nowadays. Where’s my share? Where’s my equity?
“I want what I deserve, what I’ve earned. They’ve got to come talk to me now. I’ve got both belts, a chunk of money and a little family on the way. You want me to stick around and keep doing what I’m doing, let’s talk, but I want ownership now. I want equal share, I want what I deserve – what I’ve earned.”
Talk show host O’Brien is indeed one of the celebrity clients of new UFC owners WME-IMG to take up the opportunity to invest in the promotion following their $4 billion takeover.
The other 22 are Ben Affleck, Michael Bay, Tom Brady, Rob Dyrdek, Guy Fieri, Flea, Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, Calvin Harris, Anthony Kiedis, Jimmy Kimmel, Robert Kraft, Adam Levine, Li Na, LL Cool J, Cam Newton, Trey Parker, Tyler Perry, Maria Sharapova, Sylvester Stallone, Mark Wahlberg, Serena Williams and Venus Williams.
We’re not dismissing Maria Sharapova’s contribution to the world of MMA, but if tennis players, NFL stars, one half of the genius behind South Park and Calvin Harris can have a stake in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, you can see why McGregor wants a slice.
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