Conor McGregor mentee loses in eight seconds on The Ultimate Fighter

McGregor and Michael Chandler are coaching opposing teams of fighters on the UFC television show

Alex Pattle
Combat Sports Correspondent
Thursday 01 June 2023 05:30 EDT
Comments
McGregor Forever trailer

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Conor McGregor’s team got off to a rough start on the new season of The Ultimate Fighter, with one of the Irishman’s mentees suffering a knockout loss inside eight seconds.

McGregor is coaching one team of fighters on the UFC television show, while Michael Chandler is training the opposing set of contestants. Once the show has concluded in August, McGregor and Chandler will square off in the Octagon, though fans are still awaiting a date, location and weight class for the fight.

The first episode of season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter aired on Tuesday (30 May), and it centred on a lightweight clash between Nate Jennerman and Roosevelt Roberts. Jennerman was representing McGregor’s team, while Roberts was fighting on Chandler’s.

The episode, which featured a look into the life and family of Jennerman, ended with the Wisconsin-born fighter getting knocked out by Roberts within eight seconds. The camera then cut to a disappointed McGregor.

“We were all upset for ‘Nasty Nate’,” McGregor said in an interview thereafter. “He didn’t get to show much of what he has. It’s a big stage; sometimes we can rise, sometimes it goes against you. In this one, that’s essentially what happened.”

Footage then showed McGregor talking to Jennerman in the locker room, saying: “We’re still all here with you, Nate, we’re still all here with you. We’ll get back to the gym.”

Jennerman replied, “I’m sorry,” to which McGregor said: “Don’t worry about it. Back to the gym. That’s alright, we’ll get better now.”

In another interview segment, Jennerman reflected on the loss. “I feel like I left my kids behind for nothing right now. I feel like I didn’t even get to fight. I just got clipped right off the rip, I didn’t even get to show myself out here.”

Jennerman’s opponent Roberts is one of several contestants this season to be pursuing a return to the UFC, having fought in the promotion before.

Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in