Conor McGregor denies interfering with TUF cast, so what if he did?

The return of Conor McGregor is sort of upon us. And the previous champion, together with the UFC, have chosen The Final Fighter home because the launchpad for the subsequent chapter in his ‘Infamous’ profession.

The thirty first season of TUF is because of premiere on Might 30 and star McGregor reverse Michael Chandler. The pair will coach groups of fighters earlier than presumably combating one another at a future occasion.

Final week it was alleged that McGregor had bounced fighters from the TUF forged so he may parachute in some cronies he trains with on the common. Supervisor Daniel Rubenstein named the unfortunate former cast-mates as Ken Cross, Mitch Ramirez and Brandon Jenkins.

UFC welterweight Chris Curtis supported that declare. He was met with a response from McGregor, who denied interfering within the casting course of.

“Not true,” wrote McGregor. “I solely know 1 man on this present and he put himself ahead for it. And he’s now, after immediately, set to struggle the no.1 seed! I didn’t ask nor request nothing! And I definitely didn’t have folks eliminated. I’m simply tryna get again within the combine myself so fuck off.”

So possibly McGregor didn’t get guys kicked off the present. However so what if he did?

If the UFC needs folks to truly watch TUF this spring, let him choose his entire crew. Let him choose the opposite crew, too. Hell, why not the referees as nicely?

McGregor has earned greater than sufficient leverage within the sport, and popular culture, to a minimum of attempt to name his personal pictures on a platform akin to this. And when you assume this present was going to be a couple of fighter aside from him, then I’ve unhealthy information for you.

McGregor goes to embrace goblin-mode this sequence, screaming at everybody, destroying no matter isn’t bolted down and customarily doing what he can to promote himself as a potent and harmful drive in MMA. He wants to try this within the TUF fitness center, and on-line, as a result of it’s been one thing he’s not been in a position to do within the Octagon since he beat Eddie Alvarez in 2016.

Because the losses have racked up for McGregor, his inflammatory behaviour has solely elevated, reaching new ranges of cringe every time. At first it felt like he was making an attempt to persuade us he was nonetheless a risk, however currently it seems like he’s been making an attempt to persuade himself, which is gloomy.

And when you’re frightened that this type of McGregor Present remedy ruining TUF then you need to assume there’s something left to wreck.

TUF’s trajectory from must-see-TV to irrelevance rivals The Simpsons, with dozens of seasons of drek outweighing the magic few that have been revolutionary. It’s simple thus far the decline of Groening’s well-known yellow household (I place it at part-way via season 9). Pinning down precisely when TUF went off the rails is tougher. The stay season felt like a selected low level, however that got here nicely after notorious scenes of inseminated sushi and higher deckers.

Since day one the UFC have leaned into the fact TV nature of the present (keep in mind Willa Ford?). With the sporting implications of the sequence much less important than ever, why not simply go overboard?

The Final Fighter hasn’t been a star-making enterprise for a long-time both. The winners of the previous 5 seasons are a collective 13-11 after successful the present. That’s not stunning, provided that there are few good causes for highly-touted fighters to topic themselves to the sequence anymore. And the UFC has higher choices for fighters they assume are stars within the making, too.

The rise of the Contender Collection ought to make each fighter assume twice about agreeing to weight-cut sleepaway camp the place they don’t receives a commission to struggle they usually’re wins don’t go on their professional data. When a prospect seems to be on the success of fighters coming off these exhibits as of late, who’re they extra more likely to need to emulate, too? Sean O’Malley or Mike Trizano?

It appears fairly apparent at this level that the UFC views the Contender Collection as a greater testing floor for fighters they assume have a shot of creating it massive within the Octagon. The criminally low cost UFC doubtless enjoys how little funding they should put into Contender Collection expertise, too, only a naked bones APEX struggle evening, a minuscule entry-level contract after which they will put the brand new meat proper into an occasion the next week, no six month embargo in order to not spoil the outcomes of a pre-taped actuality TV competitors.

So with how meaningless TUF has develop into currently, utilizing it as a viral clip generator to advertise McGregor vs. Chandler looks like the perfect technique from a UFC perspective. That may have been far more efficient, and albeit attention-grabbing, if McGregor’s curiosity within the sequence was heightened by filling his crew with SBG up-and-comers and and a few characters from his previous like Charlie Ward and Cian Cowley. We nearly had this the final time McGregor did TUF. Wait, I’m wondering if he and Lobov may patch issues as much as give it one other go?

Concerning the creator: Tim Bissell is a author, editor and deputy website supervisor for Bloody Elbow. He has lined fight sports activities since 2015. Tim covers information and occasions and has additionally written longform and investigative items. (full bio)