There’s a lot of love there.
Cristiano Ronaldo is at the top of his game and not going anywhere.
A big fan of the UFC, he can see a lot of similarities in Conor McGregor.
The pair caught up a couple of months back as Ronaldo was basking in Portugal’s 2016 success and The Notorious was edging towards avenging his UFC 196 loss to Nate Diaz. They posed for pictures, did some light sparring and posed for more pictures.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIQvUvQgo7_/?taken-by=cristiano&hl=en
There was a bit of small talk afterwards and McGregor asked Ronaldo what his plans were for that night. The Real Madrid star told him he was off to a party at Jennifer Lopez’ house. McGregor invited himself along.
John Kavanagh, McGregor’s coach, also tagged along. He recalls, in a Sunday Independent interview today, that McGregor was almost immediately spirited away by Lopez for a dance. Ronaldo had more than a few questions for Kavanagh, who says:
“Ronaldo comes over and tells me that he reads everything I write and follows me on Instagram. I’m thinking ‘Wait until I tell my dad about this’.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIQs5cMgyUt/?taken-by=coach_kavanagh&hl=en
Ronaldo was not finished there. Kavanagh continues:
“He kept coming over, and then he would drift away, and then I’d be in another part [of the house] and he’d come over again.”
Kavanagh’s partner, Orlagh Hunter, joked at the time that the football superstar was harassing him but events would take a stranger turn. Ronaldo got Kavanagh in a headlock. “It was a drunk party,” Kavanagh remarks.
Released from the headlock, Kavanagh and Ronaldo discussed training regimes and ‘psychological aspects of competition’. The MMA coach comments:
“This guy is just like Conor. Just a one-track mind, no interest in anything else.
“Civilians would call them obsessed or say there was something wrong with them, but you can’t get to that level unless you have that personality.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Kavanagh reveals Kanye West and Arnold Schawrzenegger are ‘down to earth’ chaps, Mike Tyson offers succinct business advice and Justin Timberlake was ‘like a fanboy’.
Ronaldo gets it though. That is why he can enjoy Conor McGregor’s journey almost as much as his own.
Almost.
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