Conor McGregor will look to make history on March 5th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas when he faces Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 197.
McGregor would become the first fighter to hold two world titles in two different weight classes simultaneously should he be victorious when he challenges the Brazilian champion. However, the two came face to face before that on Wednesday evening at a press conference in Las Vegas.
Women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm, who puts her title on the line against Miesha Tate for the first time in the co-main event was also present, but it was McGregor who dominated the press conference.
Speaking about the fight, he said he wanted to move up a division because he came into the UFC with two belts from Cage Warriors, and wanted to do the same again at the highest level.
He added that he had made the fight against Dos Anjos, and pointed to his opponent saying "you're here because I put you here".
Dos Anjos retorted that "he don’t want to put his featherweight title on the line so it’s smart, he’s trying to go up, but I’m going to beat him and send him back".
Later, the Brazilian added that "I will have the chance to win this in the first but I won’t take it. I’m going to hurt him, make it last until the third or fourth round".
Similarly, Conor McGregor followed suit with his own prediction, saying "I’d love to beat the ugly out of him and drag him into the second and third round, but I feel like I’m going to dust him in under one minute".
He argued that he would be a "different animal" at 155 lbs, and spoke about the possibility of coming back to Ireland
He also spoke about the controversy surrounding comments made by Floyd Mayweather and how he and McGregor were perceived differently despite them both being trash talkers.
"I think Floyd needs to learn before he opens his mouth [...] You don’t know nothing about me, I take from all cultures. I am a product of many cultures, as a young Irishman".
He added that "there’s people buried in the desert for less than that, and Floyd needs to understand who he’s speaking about before he speaks".
McGregor also came close to having a Beatles moment when addressing remarks he'd previously made about Dos Anjos' religion. The Brazilian stated that he was a tool in the hands of Jesus, and McGregor would see what that means when they meet in the Octagon.
The Irishman countered by saying "Me and Jesus are cool. I’m cool with all the gods. Gods recognise gods".
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