Conor McGregor continues to reflect on MMA career with latest social media post

Conor McGregor has, once again, reflected on his MMA accomplishments. This time, he has focused both on self-belief and the historic impact of his arrival in the UFC, which ultimately led to an explosion in the Irish MMA scene.

Conor McGregor thinks back on his pursuit of greatness

Before Conor McGregor, there were no high-profile Irish MMA fighters. Certainly none that got anywhere near a UFC title. However, his blend of thrilling performances and charismatic trash talk made him a promotional lightning rod in the UFC. As he often said back in his featherweight days, he didn't sign with the UFC to be just another roster member. He did so to rise to the top and he did, not only becoming the promotion's first-ever simultaneous two-division champion, but the biggest star in MMA history.

Now, years later, McGregor has identified the traits that helped him achieve everything he has, and what separated him from his contemporaries. First, he highlights his bulletproof self-belief, then the willingness to pour all of his effort into his goals.

"I've always said it: We're not here to take part. We're here to take over. They came to compete. We came to end it. Standing over them isn't luck. Believe you can beat the best. Then put in the work to prove it. Don't be afraid to say what you want. Be prepared to give everything for it. Back yourself. Do the work. Take over."

Throughout his career, McGregor has always believed he could beat the best, even when his promises and predictions seemed unrealistic. Hardly anyone thought he would have knocked out José Aldo in 13 seconds at UFC 194. At the time, Aldo was on an 18-fight win streak and widely regarded as the greatest featherweight of all time, with seven successful UFC featherweight title defenses. He seemed unbeatable, at least until McGregor arrived. Unfortunately, McGregor hasn't always triumphed over impossible odds, as he failed to defeat the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr. in their 2017 boxing match, which he lost via 10th round TKO.

Similarly, he failed to beat another undefeated fighter in Khabib Nurmagomedov, who submitted him in round four at UFC 229 to successfully defend his lightweight title. Nevertheless, without McGregor, there likely wouldn't be an Ian Machado Garry in the welterweight title picture today, as he's the catalyst behind the rise in Irish MMA.