Stephen Thompson discusses training sessions with Conor McGregor on The Ultimate Fighter: “He’s 100% in”
UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson has shed light on Conor McGregor’s return.
‘The Notorious’ is currently preparing for a return to the cage later this year against Michael Chandler. The bout will be McGregor’s first since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier in their July 2021 trilogy bout. Ahead of his return, the former featherweight and lightweight champion helped coach The Ultimate Fighter.
The latest season of the show is set to begin airing later this month. For his part, Stephen Thompson will likely make a few appearances on the show. In a recent interview with Chamatkar Sandhu, ‘Wonderboy’ explained that the training sessions came about as an offer thanks to management companies. Thompson was originally in Las Vegas to film a commercial for the UFC.
However, upon receiving the offer to train with Conor McGregor, the former title challenger agreed. In the interview, Thompson stated that the Irishman looked incredibly motivated on The Ultimate Fighter. The welterweight contender added that he loved seeing McGregor be so invested in his team and return.
Stephen Thompson discusses training with Conor McGregor
“I was out there in Vegas doing a Jose Cuervo commercial with Kevin Holland,” Stephen Thompson stated in the interview. “I was out there we went to the PI, got a little bit of a workout in. That’s where they were filming the TUF show so. Ended up meeting my manager, obviously, Conor and I have bumped into each other many, many, many times… I got a call from Conor asking me to be a guest coach.”
He continued, “I was like, ‘Are you kidding me? Let’s go, this is an opportunity I can’t turn down’. So ended up staying an extra three or four days, just being a guest coach for his team. Which was just awesome, you know what I mean? It was really cool… He inspires his team, he’s 100% in with his team every step of the way which I love because that’s what I do for a living. I teach for a living. To be able to see him with compassion for those guys and want to see them win, he puts everything into his guys. I love that.”
“Oh yeah [he’s got the fire back], I could see it every time he talks, every punch he threw, he was like swinging at somebody. You could see it in him.”
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