Paul Hughes praises Conor McGregor
Last Saturday, Hughes made his PFL/Bellator debut, defeating Bobby King in the co-main event at Bellator Dublin. It was a great performance for the Irish prospect in front of his home country, but it was made even more special for Hughes having his compatriot Conor McGregor sitting cageside. After the fight, Hughes even shouted out McGregor, saying, “Everybody talks bad about you, but this guy changed the game and he changed the lives of young fighters.”
In conversation with Ariel Helwani MMA Hour Hughes said Monday that he had originally had another planned post-fight interview, but McGregor's presence prompted him to give an impromptu speech.
“I wanted to put the lightweight belt on the line against Usman Nurmagomedov,” Hughes said.[But] He was due to play Alexandre Chabily at the end of the year, so it seemed unlikely that they would have a match before next season and I would play him, so I kept quiet.
“And then it didn't end up happening. The post-fight interview obviously went in a different direction with McGregor coming out and having a conversation with him. So the post-fight interview ended up going in a different direction.”
Hughes' support for McGregor actually comes at an interesting time for the boxer. “The Notorious” was scheduled to face Michael Chandler at UFC 303 this weekend but pulled out after breaking a toe during training camp. The former UFC champion received a lot of criticism when it was revealed that McGregor had pulled out of the fight due to a toe injury, but Hughes is backing McGregor. Hughes is not one of those critics.
“It was a heartfelt statement,” Hughes said. “Dan asked me, 'What's it like to have Conor McGregor here?' I just saw him, he walked up to the cage, I was looking at him and it was a heartfelt statement. That's the reality. I'm just speaking the truth. He's broken down the mental barriers for young fighters, especially from the island of Ireland.
“Only 10 years ago, he [Diego] “In the same arena as Brandao, that was the beginning of his rise and the beginning of changing MMA in Ireland forever. Then 10 years later, he inspired me to co-main event in the first ever big global show, in the same arena, and I got to hang out with him cageside. I felt it was only right to thank him, because it was true.”
If McGregor paved the way for Irish fighters, Hughes is part of the next generation of Irish fighters hoping to follow in his footsteps. The 27-year-old former Cage Warriors champion is currently 12-1 in his MMA career, with a long-term goal of competing in the PFL lightweight season next year. Until then, he'll take it easy, enjoy his first win with the promotion and see what happens next.
“I'm going to take a week off here and just get some rest,” Hughes said. “It's been a crazy journey since I got out of there, even before I got out of that contract with Cage Warriors… I got all that done, fights booked in three arenas, shows built around me, and finally getting my business up and running. So I'm going to take a week off and then I'll talk to PFL-Bellator and see what they want me to do.”
