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Tag: John Kavanagh

  • Johnny Walker Explains Decision To Leave John Kavanagh’s SBG Ireland: ‘Environment Wasn’t Perfect For MMA’ 

    Johnny Walker Explains Decision To Leave John Kavanagh’s SBG Ireland: ‘Environment Wasn’t Perfect For MMA’ 

    Johnny Walker put a lot into his scheduled return at UFC 311 following some big changes that have taken place in his life and career. Unfortunately, the light heavyweight contender was unable to reap the rewards of his hard work after a rib injury forced him to withdraw from his prelim bout against Bogdan Guskov.

    The Brazilian is currently coming off of consecutive losses following an up and down trajectory in recent years. During that time frame, he was training out of SBG Dublin under John Kavanagh and Walker is very grateful of this experience. However, there were some key areas that he didn’t feel like he was fulfilling in his preparations whilst being based out of Ireland in recent times.

    After spending some time at different gyms, his led him to moving his entire life to Las Vegas where in the combat sports capital of the world, he has everything he could possibly need at his finger tips. Walker gave two specific examples during a recent interview with MMA Junkie regarding holes in his training camp that had recently appeared.

    The 32-year old believes that his last defeat inside the Octagon came about because of one specific reason with another key factor being his lack of training partners. Walker did have a small stable of guys to work with at one point whilst he was training in Dublin but that hasn’t been the case as time has gone on and finding bodies to work with at Xtreme Couture is not exactly difficult.

    “We had the best coach there. John was a very high-level coach,” Walker said. “He did the best for me. He improved my game a lot, but I just had one or two training partners. The last fight against (Volkan) Oezdemir, I was adapting myself to get ready as best as I could for the fight. I was doing boxing sparring in the ring. … In the fight, you can see I brought him close to the fence, which was wrong because I was sparring in the ring. You can’t spar in the ring and fight in the octagon. It’s totally different. In the octagon, if you step close to the fence, the guy is going to take you down, or the guy is going to knock you out because when you’re close to the fence, it’s the worst place to be. The guy (Oezdemir) knocked me out because I brought him to the fence.

    “This is the worst thing you can do in MMA. The environment wasn’t perfect for MMA. At SBG, I had just one training partner. Here in Vegas, I have the UFC PI for strength and conditioning, for nutrition, for recovery. At Xtreme Couture, I have high-level guys between top 10 and top 15. Light heavyweight and heavyweight, and Sean Strickland. Every day I have a high-level guy to train with. You need challenges, and now at Xtreme, I have that challenge. …I have everything now for recovery, for nutrition, for training, coaching. Now the light heavyweights are in trouble. Now you’re going to have the best version of Johnny Walker because I’m just going to be better. Now my career is going to fly.”

  • Conor McGregor’s Coach On Whether Islam Makhachev Can Outdo Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Legacy

    Conor McGregor’s Coach On Whether Islam Makhachev Can Outdo Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Legacy

    It almost seemed written in the stars that after Khabib Nurmagomedov retired on top of the lightweight division, Islam Makhachev would take over in his place.

    What wasn’t predictable at the time was that Makhachev would go on to be arguably the best fighter in the sport today.

    The current lightweight champion has been so impressive since winning the belt at UFC 280 that it has led to the conversation of whether he’s better than “The Eagle” ever was.

    Another big question is whether Makhachev will ever be able to overtake his close friend’s legacy after Nurmagomedov retired with an undefeated record of 29-0.

    Though there isn’t competition between them, the 32-year old was always going to have high expectations hanging over him.

    John Kavanagh Outlines How Islam Makhachev Can Potentially Overtake Khabib Nurmagomedov

    Though Makhachev doesn’t have the option of beating Nurmagomedov’s undefeated run, there are ways that he can accomplish feats that the former champion didn’t.

    The current 155-pound king has spoken a lot about wanting to move to welterweight in the near future though those plans seem to have been put on hold now that Belal Muhammad, who does parts of his camps with Makhachev and Nurmagomedov, has become the 170-pound champion.

    In a recent interview with Islam Babadzhanov, John Kavanagh gave his take on if and how Makhachev can pull out in front of “The Eagle”.

    The long-time coach of Conor McGregor at SBG Ireland also pointed to the lightweight champion adding a second belt to his collection which Nurmagomedov never had the option to do.

    “Wow. I’m sure there is [a chance for him to outdo Khabib] but it’s hard. You know, Khabib had obviously such a fantastic run. Maybe Islam can do a ‘champ champ’ and go up some weight classes. We will see.”

    Read also: ‘That Was A Fluke Too’ – Former UFC Champ Questions O’Malley’s Win Over Sterling After UFC 306

  • Conor McGregor’s Coach Omits Jon Jones From His MMA Mount Rushmore

    Conor McGregor’s Coach Omits Jon Jones From His MMA Mount Rushmore

    Conor McGregor’s coach, John Kavanagh, recently shared his picks for an MMA Mount Rushmore. Intriguingly, Jon Jones was conspicuously absent from his list.

    The reigning UFC heavyweight champion’s name is a natural inclusion in any conversation about the greatest MMA fighter of all time (GOAT), and his achievements would appear to certainly validate that status. “Bones” boasts a career marked by extraordinary accomplishments and historic milestones.

    At just 23, Jones made history by defeating then-light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua in the third round at UFC 128 in March 2011, securing his place as the youngest UFC champion ever. From that moment, he never looked back, embarking on a remarkable journey that culminated in an unprecedented 13 successful title defenses.

    In recent times, no one has been more vocally supportive of Jones’ status as the GOAT and the top pound-for-pound fighter than UFC CEO Dana White. White has been notably immersed in extensive discussions, staunchly defending the 37-year-old New Yorker’s legacy.

    However, Kavanagh’s all-time MMA elite list boasts an array of unexpected names, and it overlooks Jones despite his legendary career…

    Kavanagh Reveals Five Picks for MMA Mount Rushmore With No Jones

    During a recent discussion with Lucky Block, Kavanagh was prompted to name the greatest MMA fighters of all time. The renowned coach listed five names, deviating from the traditional four-person Mount Rushmore.

    Naturally, Kavanagh included “The Notorious” as his first pick, highlighting the remarkable achievements of his student and the profound impact he’s had on the sport.

    “Unsurprisingly, I’m going to name Conor first because he became the first simultaneous two-weight world champion. That’s no small feat, but also what he did for the game in general, his general introduction of MMA to a whole world who would have never seen it, really. He’s the first and maybe the only one to truly cross over into, let’s say, normal life, and obviously, now he’s in movies as well. A lot of people to be thankful that if you’re involved in the MMA industry, you probably had a few guys walk into your gym because of Conor’s influence.”

    Kavanagh then listed Russian MMA icon Fedor Emelianenko among his favorites, followed by UFC Hall of Famer BJ Penn, recognizing his McGregor-esque achievements.

    For his fourth pick, he named another legend, former longtime UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

    “Number two, I’ll say Fedor Emelianenko. He’s one of my favorite fighters of all time. Incredible Russian fighter. I’m going to say, BJ Penn, another two-weight world champion. Incredible skill set. At four, I have to go for Anderson Silva. I think some record number of title defenses and just so skillful, you watch him back in the day when he was fighting someone who’s a kind of a friend of mine, Forrest Griffin. Forrest is so tough, so durable, so good, and Anderson made the poor guy look like he’d never trained. He has amazing skills.”

    The SBG Ireland founder placed the first women’s UFC bantamweight champion, Ronda Rousey, as his fifth pick, celebrating her as a trailblazer who revolutionized women’s MMA.

    “At five I will say Ronda Rousey and not just for her amazing victories in the UFC, but the fact that she really introduced women’s MMA to the world. Dana was pretty headstrong all those years, saying he would never have women in MMA. And I think he took one look at her and said, let’s get women in MMA. So, there we go. That’s my five.”

    Kavanagh’s omission of “Bones” from his MMA Mount Rushmore is indeed surprising, but he’s not alone in leaving out the former light heavyweight champion.

    Recently, UFC middleweight veteran Sam Alvey has also excluded Jones from his list of top fighters, further stirring curiosity about Jones’ place in the pantheon of MMA greatness.

  • Conor McGregor’s Coach Predicts Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili: ‘Going To Be In A Lot Of Trouble…’

    Conor McGregor’s Coach Predicts Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili: ‘Going To Be In A Lot Of Trouble…’

    The main event of UFC 306 that goes down on Saturday night inside the Sphere has proven to be a tough one to call for many people.

    In the champion Sean O’Malley, you have an incredibly dangerous striker who is always calm under pressure and reads fights incredible well. Merab Dvalishvili, meanwhile, is a perfect counter part to that and swaps aesthetically pleasing offense for an unbreakable will and never-ending gas tank, which he uses to overwhelm opponents from bell to bell.

    In many ways, the two men are the perfect counter to one another and that provides the question: who will be able to implement their specific skillset the best?

    This clash of styles that goes back to the earliest days of mixed martial arts is something that John Kavanagh referenced when weighing in with his thoughts.

    John Kavanagh Breaks Down UFC 306 Main Event, Picks His Winner

    Speaking to Lucky Block in a recent interview, the head coach of Conor McGregor described the upcoming bantamweight title fight as a “throwback.”

    Both O’Malley and Dvalishvili are capable in all areas but there’s no denying where they are at their best, which just so happens to be their opponent’s kryptonite in this fight.

    “I’m really, I’m really looking forward to that. In MMA today it’s usually two guys that are quite well skilled everywhere. And this one I feel is a bit of a throwback to when you’ve somebody very skilled in striking versus somebody very skilled in grappling, so the classic striker versus grappler. If Merab is unable to close that distance, he’s going to be in a lot of trouble. If Merab can close that distance and start chaining his takedowns together, he’s got the most incredible gas tank. He just goes and goes and goes. If he’s able to get attached, Sean’s in a lot of trouble. So it’s a very interesting fight for me as a fan and as a coach.”

    Kavanagh followed up his thoughts on the matchup by giving his prediction for the fight, leaning toward the belt staying in O’Malley’s possession thanks to his lethal striking.

    “If you were to put a gun to my head for a prediction, I do think Sean will catch him. He’s such a sharp shooter. He’s got fantastic striking and I could see him landing some of those big stray shots. He has a win over Merab’s teammate Aljamain Sterling so I’m sure that Aljamain is helping out Merab a lot in the preparation for this but Sean is on a real run at the moment and I could just see him getting that finish.”

  • MMA News Today: Conor McGregor’s Coach Sends UFC Plea After Dublin Press Conference Sells Out In Minutes, Benoît Saint Denis Breaks Down Dustin Poirier vs Islam Makhachev, & More

    MMA News Today: Conor McGregor’s Coach Sends UFC Plea After Dublin Press Conference Sells Out In Minutes, Benoît Saint Denis Breaks Down Dustin Poirier vs Islam Makhachev, & More

    Welcome to MMA News Today, a daily feature running down the most interesting stories in the world of mixed martial arts. For May 29, 2024, we’re taking a look at:

    • Kavanagh calls for the 3Arena to be opened up
    • Saint-Denis says knockout is key for Poirier
    • The all-female promotion is back up and running

    John Kavanagh Calls For The 3Arena To Upgrade Capacity 

    The press conference for UFC 303 and the return of Conor McGregor is shaping up to be a huge moment in the MMA calendar.

    On Monday, The Mac and Michael Chandler will arrive at the 3Arena in Dublin and if there were any doubts as to whether “The Notorious” has still got the backing of the Irish fans, those questions are soon to be answered.

    Tickets went on sale this morning for the event and were free but limited to just two per purchase but that didn’t stop them from selling out in minutes.

    The seating plan for the event shows that as usual for these kinds of occasions, they were only planning to use a part of the full arena.

    McGregor’s own coach, John Kavanagh, said on social media that they should open up the building to accommodate for more seats in order to completely pack out the building for another iconic press conference.

    Benoît Saint Denis Says Dustin Poirier Can Only Win Via Knockout Against Someone As Well-Rounded As Islam Makhachev

    Dustin Poirier earned his shot at the lightweight title following an incredible win at UFC 299 where he was forced to face some real adversity.

    Benoît Saint Denis certainly put “The Diamond” through the ringer before he was stopped in the second round, showcasing his aggression from the very start.

    Poirier weathered the storm and let his striking, specifically his boxing and power, do the talking on that night in Miami.

    In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Saint Denis said that this will be the same for Poirier this weekend at UFC 302.

    In his mind, he believes that the challenger and his former opponent will only be able to pull off the upset if he is able to stop Islam Makhachev with his strikes.

    “Dustin Poirier is very composed and experienced fighter and I do believe he has the boxing at his side but Makhachev is very well rounded and I do believe he has to watch my fight against Poirier as well as Dustin’s fight with Oliveira. Everybody knows what the game plan is gonna be. It’s gonna be Makhachev trying to submit Poirier and Poirier trying to knock out Makhachev, with Makhachev having a bit more options. Makhachev can knock out or submit Poirier but I see Poirier only having the knockout win. Decision-wise, I also see Makhachev having the physicality to dominate the fight if it goes long.”

    Invicta FC Is Back On June 28 After 8-Month Hiatus And Concerning Reports

    Having not hosted an event since last October, reports were suggesting that Invicta FC was coming to an unfortunate end.

    The all-female promotion has had an incredible impact on the sport by providing an excellent place for fighters to build up experience and prove themselves.

    Despite the concerns for fans, Invicta FC isn’t going anywhere, as was announced by the promotion’s President Shannon Knapp during a recent appearance on Sirius XM.

    Knapp announced that the promotion will be returning home to Kansas City on June 28 where former UFC fighter Talita Bernardo will be defending her bantamweight title against Olga Rubin in the main event.

    Read more on the story here.

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  • John Kavanagh Responds To Firing Calls After McGregor’s Losses

    SBG Ireland headman John Kavanagh isn’t losing sleep over calls for him to be terminated following UFC star Conor McGregor’s recent struggles.

    Kavanagh has most recently been the target of UFC commentator and former fighter Michael Bisping, who called for Kavanagh to be let go by McGregor’s inner circle.

    It all started when Kavanagh seemed more jovial than many believed he should’ve been after McGregor suffered a TKO loss via doctor’s stoppage to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. Bisping went as far as to say that Kavanagh should be “fired immediately” after his reaction.

    During a recent interview with The Mirror, Kavanagh responded to Bisping’s comments along with overall calls for him to step aside as McGregor’s coach.

    “I wouldn’t say I was hurt, I wasn’t going, ‘Oh, no, Bisping said something’, that’s his opinion and everybody is welcome to their opinion,” Kavanagh said. “I’m always self-critical but if I’m being 100 percent honest, it’ll be the people closest to me saying something – I have a lot of very honest people around me – that’ll be what makes me really stand up and think.

    “So look, things are looking up and to Bisping I’d say ‘thanks very much for the constructive criticism’, keep it coming and we’ll keep trying to improve.”

    Kavanagh also feels that Bisping’s remarks are an example of a larger pattern of SBG Ireland being held to a different standard because of McGregor’s fame.

    “So we’re judged under a different set of rules to everybody else, and that’s fine because we also get a lot of benefits from the 2,000lb gorilla that is Conor,” Kavanagh said.

    “We get a lot of attention here, lots of great opportunities, my fight team gets to be involved with big shows.

    Conor McGregor, John Kavanagh Have Worked Together For Years

    McGregor has been at SBG Ireland with Kavanagh since before he became one of the UFC’s biggest superstars. His time with the gym stems from his title wins in Cage Warriors before ultimately making the move to the UFC.

    McGregor hasn’t won in the Octagon since his first-round finish over Donald Cerrone at UFC 246. He has lost three of his last four fights overall, with defeats to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Poirier(2).

    As of now, it seems like McGregor doesn’t have any plans to move away from his roots with Kavanagh and SBG Ireland. As he gets ready to make his UFC return in 2022, he’ll look to get back in the win column with Kavanagh in his corner.

    What are your thoughts on John Kavanagh’s response to Michael Bisping?

  • Kavanagh Says Potential McGregor/Diaz Trilogy Gives Him ‘Nightmares’

    John Kavanagh and Conor McGregor are planning a comeback but against who?

    Conor McGregor is currently sidelined with a leg injury. Although his timeline for return is not yet specified, he is still talking about his plan of attack. McGregor has stated that he would like to fight for the belt when he is ready to get back in the cage.

    However, his head coach John Kavanagh might have some more realistic ideas. Kavanagh sat down with Ariel Helwani of The MMA Hour to discuss options (h/t MMA Fighting).

    “I’ll be honest, the Nate Diaz trilogy is very, very tempting,” Kavanagh said. “It’s a fight that gives me nightmares. The man doesn’t stop coming forward, whether it’s three rounds or five rounds, but it’s an intriguing fight. So that one is definitely very interesting. But also the Tony Ferguson one — it never happened. It was talked about a lot. And Tony still has, I believe, a lot to offer the game. He’s a very unorthodox striker, grappler. I think the buildup would be fun for the fans. So any of those kind of legacy guys.”

    McGregor is the most wanted fighter on the UFc roster. He is constantly being called out by fighters, both in his division and out. He will most likely have his choice of who he wants to fight when he is ready. The only exception could be whoever is holding the belt when that time comes.

    Champion Charles Oliveira and Duston Poirier will be battling it out to see who is the king at 155 pounds on Dec. 11. Whoever wins would probably like to face McGregor next, but now McGregor has lost two in a row and the next shot was already promised to Justin Gaethje. That hasn’t stopped McGregor from dreaming about redemption.

    “We’re still chatting about fighting techniques, all day, every day. He’s still talking about getting that belt again, all day, every day. What can you conclude from this? He loves fighting. He loves mixed martial arts. He loves competition. So let’s get back healthy, let’s get back training, and let’s go on a run in ‘22, and I’m sure there’s some people there with steam coming out of their ears that he’s coming back for that belt, but I’m sorry to upset you — he’s coming back there for that belt, so give me your best shot on Twitter.”

    Who do you want to see Conor McGregor face in his return fight?