UFC 189 Judo Chop – Conor McGregor: A True Fighter

Bloody Elbow’s striking specialist Connor Ruebusch breaks down the invisible punching mechanics that make Conor McGregor such an accurate volume striker.

189 will be Conor McGregor’s chance to prove that he is indeed one of MMA’s biggest draws, especially now that featherweight champion Jose Aldohas been forced to pull out of their much anticipated fight. We won’t know until the pay-per-view numbers come in whether “The Notorious” is really the economic force the UFC claims him to be.

There is no doubt, however, that McGregor is one of the MMA world’s most persistent talking points. His personality and eclectic fighting style have received no end of attention and commentary from MMA fans, journalists, and analysts alike. What this means is that, on a surface level, you’ve probably heard everything there is to hear about McGregor at this point. You know he has great distance management. You know he’s settling more and more into the role of swarmer–and if you read my piece “The Puncher’s Path,” you may not be certain whether or not that’s a positive development. You know that he hasn’t faced a wrestler, but you should also know that his counter-wrestling appears decent nonetheless.

So today I thought I’d attempt something a little different, and give you a perspective on Conor McGregor’s striking prowess that you probably haven’t heard before. And to best understand this unexplored facet of the Dublin destroyer’s game, we have to first cross the Irish sea and travel southeast to London where, in 1599 AD, a man named George Silver published his thoughts on the art of fighting.

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