Tyson Fury: 'Conor McGregor copied my style'

Trash talk has always been at the heart of combat sports. Over the years, mastery on the microphone has propelled fighters to superstardom, and there is nobody in UFC history who has weaponized the mic better than Conor McGregor.

The Irishman demands attention each time the spotlight is on him, effortlessly breaking his opponents down mentally and selling fights. Viewers, both fans of McGregor and not, would buy his headlining pay-per-views and tune in, hoping to be treated to something spectacular after months of his verbal warfare. While many consider ‘The Notorious’ the standalone best trash talker in the history of mixed martial arts, legendary boxer Tyson Fury believes he deserves much of the credit.

During an interview with Russian media outlet ALF Global, Tyson Fury claimed that Conor McGregor copied his persona and blueprint to achieve global fame. McGregor was able to capitalize on a sport that was short on household names, used trash talk to his advantage while also delivering spectacular performances inside the cage, and quickly became the biggest star the sport had ever seen. Because of this, Fury wants to take full credit for pioneering the exact style that defined McGregor’s career.

“For me it’s always been easy. Talking is what I do best,” Fury said. “If there was world championships for talking, I’d be the undisputed champion.”

“Yeah, maybe [McGregor would compete against me on the mic]. But I taught him. He copied me. He copied my style. I’ve been talking sh*t from the beginning, a long time. I don’t do it to get in their heads. Boxing is a show business. Boxing is Hollywood. Boxing is a movie. The fans have to be entertained.”

“So, when they tune in and pay pay-per-view to watch Tyson Fury fight, press conference, build-up, they’re going to see a show. That’s why they come to see. It’s going to be a crazy show; something’s going to happen. It’s like a circus.”

Listen to Tyson Fury’s statement about Conor McGregor and more in the video below.