Conor McGregor’s victory over Chad Mendes at UFC 189 to win the UFC interim featherweight championship was the toughest fight of his UFC career and was still a second round TKO victory.
Making the victory even more impressive is McGregor’s (18-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) claim during a recent fan Q&A in Dublin that his knee injury was more significant than he had previously let on.
“Fourteen weeks before the fight I tore 80 percent of my ACL,” McGregor said. “I could barely walk. I could barely kick.”
McGregor said that it was through the quality of his training partners and awareness of his own body that he was able to overcome Mendes (17-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC), the No. 5 ranked fighter in the NOS Energy Drink MMA featherweight rankings.
“I have a lot of experience coming back from that injury. I was aware of my body, and I was aware of my balance. I have a good team around me, and I trusted everyone that was there. That’s how I performed. I train with people that I am safe with and that would allow me to get to that fight.
“I had a lot of adversity to overcome but honestly, I went into that fight and beat Chad on one leg, and now that I have gone through that adversity, I feel I have gained three new legs.”
Source: Conor McGregor claims he tore 80 percent of his ACL before UFC 189 interim title win | MMAjunkie
