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Stone Cold Steve Austin Reveals How Conor McGregor Topped ‘Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar in Changing UFC Forever

Published 03/08/2023, 1:17 PM EST

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UFC, as an MMA promotion, has seen several changes in its journey. Although the fundamental rules were established way earlier in the story, the changes over time are inevitable. Whether the reform comes from within the management or from a new fighter, it can be huge in either case. Such a change was once brought in by the legendary Conor McGregor.

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Although not a lot of people consider him the best UFC fighter out there, he surely has got some kick to his personality. The fighter’s trash-talking abilities helped him climb up the ladder as soon as he could. Even known WWE stars noticed the change he brought into the promotion and praised his success.

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WWE Hall of Famer notices Conor McGregor

McGregor is not someone you can forget once you see him in action. The fighter has been among the top brass soon after his UFC debut. His trash-talk game was so on point that he got hold of the audience pretty fast. Using this skill that he has, he changed the pay structure of UFC or even MMA as a sport. Although his rankings have taken a hit lately due to his inactivity, people can’t ignore the hold he has on the promotion. WWE legend ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin recently made a comment about The Notorious on his podcast.

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While accepting that McGregor is the reason why stars ended up making more money after his entry, he gave an example of his dear friend, Daniel Cormier.

DC, who won that fight with Brock Lesnar because he knows that’s gonna be the biggest payday of his life,” said Austin after giving the reason behind the success of every fighter’s pay increment.

According to Austin, Cormier chose the Brock Lesnar fight because the latter was the one who could draw in the audience and generate massive PPVs.Cormier chose Brock Lesnar as his opponent, as he saw him as a great opportunity to monetize his match well. 

Austin then went on to draw parallels with Conor Mcgregor. He feels McGregor is a big revenue generator for the UFC right now, and he has helped other fighters to earn more under the promotion.

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How did Conor McGregor affect the pay structure?

While the question itself can be tricky to answer, Steve Austin’s analysis helped us crack the code. When McGregor first stepped inside the octagon, he hooked everybody with his ‘X-factor’. This helped him gain a grip on the audience and the promotion itself. Austin then mentioned that he is the key reason for the fighters to earn more. As the Irishman started to demand more money for control over his PPV, other top fighters followed suit.

Watch this story:- Drake loses $2 Million after Conor McGregor’s predictions go horribly wrong at UFC 281.

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That’s what seems like to me what a lot more fighters are doing. They are very selective about their opponents,” added the WWE Hall of Famer.

In every case, it appears that McGregor has been revolutionary for the MMA promotion. Fans look forward to seeing the legend once again in the octagon in the year 2023. Let’s witness what more he has to change about the sport.

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Written by:

Kaif Ali

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Kaif Ali is a UFC content writer at Essentially Sports. He is a full-time student at Delhi University, pursuing a Bachelor's degree in the English language, and a sports enthusiast with a deep passion for MMA. He is always your go-to person when you wish to debate about any UFC champion.
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Edited by:

Arijit Saha