Mike Tyson believes Conor McGregor’s personality is a gimmick.
McGregor has marketed his personality into hundreds of millions of dollars, which is unheard of in MMA. During a recent episode of Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson, the former heavyweight boxing champion was discussing the entertainment aspect of the fight business and had this to say about ‘The Notorious’:
“You have to have a gimmick… It’s real, but it’s a gimmick. The only guys that have all the money have a gimmick. Look at Conor McGregor. He has a gimmick. He’s crazy, he’s bold, it’s a gimmick. In real life, he’s a beautiful guy.”
If Tyson is right about McGregor having a gimmick, the former two-division UFC champion has done a phenomenal job of making it believable. ‘The Notorious’ has a long list of alleged criminal actions, including assault, robbery, and mischief.
McGregor last fought in July 2021, losing against Dustin Poirier for the second consecutive time. Since then, the 34-year-old has been recovering from a gruesome leg injury suffered against Poirier. He’s now made a full recovery and plans to make his Octagon return against Michael Chandler after they coach The Ultimate Fighter.
Watch Mike Tyson discuss entertainment in combat sports below:
Mike Tyson believes the UFC is more advanced than boxing in entertainment
There are often comparisons between the UFC and boxing regarding fighter pay and overall popularity. Despite boxing being around far longer than the UFC, Mike Tyson believes the MMA promotion is superior in the entertainment aspect. He had this to say during the same episode of Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson:
“Boxing is not entertainment. The fighters entertain, but after one fight is over and there’s an intermission, nothing is happening, people are talking to each other. The UFC, when they have an intermission, it’s a party. Some people just go for the party, talk, do business. That’s why the UFC is more advanced than boxing. Boxers get paid more money, but the entity of the UFC is billions.”
Tyson has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the fight business. He’s also been a part of the boxing world for decades, making his praise of the UFC even more surprising. It’ll be intriguing to see how the UFC continues to grow in the future.
