A big fight night always brings with it plenty of intrigue
From live blog to reaction, there is no shortage of content to occupy fans (and reporters), writes Alex Pattle
Covering Conor McGregor’s UFC 257 main event against Dustin Poirier on Saturday was always going to be a great way to start the year.
The fight would be one of the most exciting of of the year. The drama of McGregor’s knockout defeat brought out the fan in me, but that is something you have to put on the backburner – as difficult as that is – when reporting the action.
There are always plenty of things to be done on a night like this. As well as the live blog, there is a breaking news report on the result needed to be filed and then turned into a longer report.
Then there are the reactions coming thick and fast – from McGregor and Poirier themselves, to UFC president Dana White and McGregor’s old rival Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The volume and quality of stories emerging from the event meant a busy and interesting night. Though it would be another couple of hours for sleep to arrive. That is the sports fan emerging again, processing what has taken place.
In the short term, a McGregor defeat – particularly the first KO loss of his MMA career – is always going to attract attention, but someone like “Notorious”, an unrivalled superstar in his sport, seeing his aura damaged (not for the first time) is not ideal from the point of view of the Irishman himself, or UFC.
As a fan of the sport, I hope we get to see McGregor fight again. However, there is little doubt that a fighter whose record over his last six fights reads as three wins and three losses has had his world-title aspirations hit.
McGregor will always be a draw for fans and so there will still be plenty of options for him to consider. But there is part of me wondering whether that is the final time we see such a hyped McGregor UFC bout.
Yours,
Alex Pattle
Sports reporter
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments