Donald Cerrone must be raging.
The movement expert worked with Conor McGregor throughout his training camp before UFC 194 and he confirmed on the MMA Hour that he has been helping him prepare for his fight against Nate Diaz.
UFC 196 will mark the first time McGregor has fought at welterweight in the UFC, a full two weight classes above every other bout he’s had with the promotion and Portal has already noticed improvements in the Notorious’ mobility.
“Huge difference, just the pressure is off. Everything is open. All the possibilities are there. We can play with a lot more things closer to the fight.”
Portal explained that he has been contacted by many athletes since McGregor had that stunning 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo to claim the 145 lb throne. However, he confessed he is unable to take on new clients at the moment.
“(I’ve been approached by) fighters and also other athletes. I’m so busy I don’t really have a lot of time to work with the people the way I work with Conor. When the time is right and the person is right, I’ll do it.”
Although Portal claims his busy lifestyle doesn’t give him a lot of free time, but he has continued to maintain a working relationship with the Notorious. He broke down exactly why he decided to make the time for McGregor and what attracting him to start training the Dubliner in the first place.
“Firstly, he was talking about movement and bringing it into the public awareness before. He was already pushing that message. His own movements and the way that he can bring into the Octagon the various movement possibilities because of that coolness.”
Then Portal dropped a quote from famous Wild West lawman Wyatt Earp to describe McGregor’s unusual movement style.
“Something I ran into recently is Wyatt Earp, he had this saying, ‘Take your time in a hurry’. That’s Conor. He takes his time in a hurry. He can be driving at 100 mph, but for him it’s 10 mph. This ability can actually bring into light all this possible movement, patterns and techniques.”
He also admitted the obvious, a big part of him working with McGregor is to benefit his movement… eh, movement.
“Then of course, the public exposure is just huge. I want people to move. I want people to realise there is something beyond fitness, beyond traditional strength and conditioning.”
