Sadly, there is a group of fresh converts to MMA that believes Conor McGregor is the first trash talker to ever set foot in the Octagon.
But before ‘The Notorious’ there was Chael Sonnen. There was Tito Ortiz. There was Michael Bisping.
And Bisping, for one, sounds irritated by the bizarre suggestion that he’s drawn inspiration from McGregor considering Bisping had 18 UFC fights to his name before the Irishman had even made his promotional debut.
‘The Count’ certainly doesn’t take kindly to questions that suggest McGregor motivated Bisping in the slightest.
“No, why would Conor McGregor motivate me?,” the UFC middleweight champion said in an interview with the Metro.
“I motivate Conor McGregor. When Conor McGregor was learning to stand to throw his first punch, I was kicking ass in the UFC.
“I’ve been at this a lot longer, so I motivate Conor McGregor. I inspire him.
“If it wasn’t for me, he wouldn’t exist. He would be working for minimum wage at the docks in Dublin.”
We’re not sure that McGregor would entirely agree with that.
Massive Dublin v Kerry preview in the latest GAA Hour. Subscribe here on iTunes