Reason for Conors popularity?

Mostly for the reason the majority have quoted here, that he's entertaining as hell and has marketed himself to utter perfection with his clever use of social media and popular opinion.

Ogata said:
Is it due to the fact that he is representing a nation which gives the fans a sense of involvement in terms of being part of something?
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Many will say no, but I honestly believe this is (at least a small part) of his draw. There are so many Americans (and Europeans and Australians for that matter) who identify with Irish heritage, he is able to draw cultural support on a universal scale from all corners of the globe.

OrigFan255 said:
There may only be a few million in Ireland but USA is fuc*king loaded with them.......I myself am 50% Irish....That explains why I like and hate him at the same time :)
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This goes with my argument above. Ed Sheeran quite recently commented that Irish folk music is one of the most popular forms of music in the world, due to the globe's general Irish diaspora. He has identified this as an effective marketing tool (and his claim to legitimacy is his Irish heritage... fair enough). It's the same for Conor. How many people in the USA call themselves Irish? How many people in the UK identify with Catholic/Irish heritage... same in Australia, New Zealand & Canada too. The huge Irish cultural affinity has a lot to do with his popularity in much the same way as brown pride Cain Velasquez being marketed to Latino markets and having a title defense in Mexio City as if he is fighting in front of a home crowd... when the guy was clearly born in the USA. It's a cultural affiliaton rather than nationalist. Let's face it... your average Irish American guy born & raised in Boston is not going to be rooting for Mayweather is he?
 
This is how most hype-trains happen:

Fighter X either gets signed or has a spectacular UFC debut. Fighter X has some quality besides skill that people latch onto, whether it's looks(Sage, Paige) or attitude(Perry, McGregor). The fandom then starts a mostly ironic or tongue-in-cheek hypetrain(Sage NorthGOAT threads, Platinum Nation threads). Then other parts of the community don't realize these hype trains are tongue-in-cheek and there's a backlash of people making more threads about Fighter X, trying to discredit them and their perceived potential, whether it's justly-so(Sage) or unjustly-so(McGregor). Either way, the amount of discussion, both positive and negative, is perceived by the UFC as Fighter X "moving the needle" so Fighter X gets a big promotional push.
 
It's not rocket science.

He has been wrecking shop meteorically.
 
He's got an arrogant attitude and a funny little leprechaun accent.

 
OrigFan255 said:
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There may only be a few million in Ireland but USA is fuc*king loaded with them.......I myself am 50% Irish....That explains why I like and hate him at the same time :)

He needs to respect ALL the fighters, not just the ones he does battle with.
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If only Mighty Mouse was Irish.... he'd be huge.
 
When Aldo dropped out of their first anticipated bout, and Conor accepted Mendes as a late replacement - that was insane. No other fighter would do that. He knew his knee was f*cked, yet he decided to put everything on the line, and agreed to fight one of the strongest wrestlers in the division. The opponent that pulled out was a striker, and he still agreed to fight a wrestler - the first high level wrestler that he would meet, and this was at the time when there was all that talk that his wrestling was his weak spot. He went on to knock Mendes out. That takes balls that no other fighter seems to posses and made me a fan.

On the other hand we have Jon Jones, who refused to fight a fighter that was going to fight him on short notice, from a weightless below him, and Jones refused. Jones is better everywhere than Chael, and he let the card collapse instead of beating his ass for the fans and the card. That's one of the many reasons why people don't like Jones, and on the flip side, why people think Conor is so gutsy and likable......
 
LargeMammal said:
This goes with my argument above. Ed Sheeran quite recently commented that Irish folk music is one of the most popular forms of music in the world, due to the globe's general Irish diaspora. He has identified this as an effective marketing tool (and his claim to legitimacy is his Irish heritage... fair enough). It's the same for Conor. How many people in the USA call themselves Irish? How many people in the UK identify with Catholic/Irish heritage... same in Australia, New Zealand & Canada too. The huge Irish cultural affinity has a lot to do with his popularity in much the same way as brown pride Cain Velasquez being marketed to Latino markets and having a title defense in Mexio City as if he is fighting in front of a home crowd... when the guy was clearly born in the USA. It's a cultural affiliaton rather than nationalist. Let's face it... your average Irish American guy born & raised in Boston is not going to be rooting for Mayweather is he?
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I agree completely!

Diaspora?.........Damn, hold up, I need my Webster's for this one. :)
 
BETtrman said:
McNugget is a great entertainer. He understands that this game is more than just being the best fighter, if you want to be able to cross over and entice guys like Floyd you need to be a great marketer as well.
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This is correct. Conor's genius ability to manipulate public opinion in his favor has been influential in his popularity & career. And for the most part, it's right that he has the ability to back it up. Of course, it's not like he has a perfect record, especially in the eyes of serious MMA fans. His first loss to Diaz remains a big blot on the record for a lot of fans and should've served as a serious wake-up call. When he called the re-match I was disappointed as I yearned for him to give up the sideshow pursuit, but he was too proud to do that. He came back for the Diaz re-match against most odds-makers and no doubt any remaining common sense... and yet he looked excellent... and continued to a near-on perfect performance against Alvarez, easily the best performance of his career. All this, coupled with his infectious confidence, on-point styling choices and smart talking quips... it's safe to say there has not been a fighter like Conor since the inception of the UFC. Whilst I am personally an unashamed Conor nay-sayer, I can totally understand his popularity.

ChucksGlassJaw said:
The haters are the ones that have taken his popularity to the next level. The GOAT talk was all a joke until they wouldn't let it go.
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The GOAT talk started out as an ironic joke, yes... but I don't think it's the haters that have propelled his popularity. Quite the contrary, I think it's all the half-casual UFC fans who weren't that interested before, because there was no one that interesting to follow. They saw a few Conor pressers on Facebook while taking a dump one day, took to his quick wit and impressive 3-piece attire and became curious... they then looked up a couple of Conor fight reels on youtube and were instantly hooked. It's not his ability to conjure polarizing emotions amongst core fans that has got him where he is, it's no doubt his ability to appeal to a large section of society who want to like UFC but have previously not had any personalities to enage with... and so have watched WWE instead! ... and the odd Chuck Liddell highlight tape of course.

ChucksGlassJaw said:
I liked him because he's a hipster knocking out all the high school wrestlers biggest heroes. He's the opposite of the Affliction wearing era dorks. He can box and he's really exciting. He's always looking to finish fights and stand up fighters are just more compelling.
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I'm going to preface this response by declaring I am in no way a Conor fan, in fact slightly the opposite. However I have to say... Conor is no hipster. Ok he's got a beard... who doesn't right now? But the guy is one tough motherfucker who has battled against all odds to be where he is. Maybe you meant something else in your point and I missed it, if so apologies... but when you say hipsters I think 'wannabe' or 'style over substance'. Conor's got style yes, but it sure as hell doesn't come without substance.

For the record I agree with the latter part of your statement, regarding the excitement he brings to fights and his compelling style.
 
Fahcough said:
Because he comes to fight. Not point jab to run a clock or stalling laying on top so he doesn't get hit.

Even in his loss, he threw caution out and tried for a highlight finish for the fans instead of fundamental touch and go to protect some stats thinking P4P means shit.
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You didn't watch the second first fight. You saw the result and made up a narrative in your head.

Conor definitely fought for a decision win in the second Nate fight. Or do you think he implemented leg kicks into his offense so he could get a TKO via leg kicks.
 
Bend NvR Break said:
You didn't watch the second first fight. You saw the result and made up a narrative in your head.

Conor definitely fought for a decision win in the second Nate fight. Or do you think he implemented leg kicks into his offense so he could get a TKO via leg kicks.
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The 2nd one throws everything out the window of what I said and who he was before lol
He was fighting for his image that night, had to win the fight and the war. If he lost again, what star power would we have to start holy wars online

Previously, he went out to bust heads. I don't recall the Max fight. Too ADHD to rewatch decision matches.
 
Amazing things happen when you get a nation behind you.

Pacquiao had the Filipines behind and he didn't even have to be charismatic or well-spoken to become a superstar. Imagine the potential with Conor.
 
He's like the Lucky Charms leprechaun...who da fook hates leprechauns or Lucky Charms?
 
Fahcough said:
Because he comes to fight. Not point jab to run a clock or stalling laying on top so he doesn't get hit.

Even in his loss, he threw caution out and tried for a highlight finish for the fans instead of fundamental touch and go to protect some stats thinking P4P means shit.
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Not only did he run in the 2nd Diaz, but he was to scared to get into Nate's guard after dropping him. Seems like someone was trying to be cautious
 
McNugget makes people think about McDonalds and they get all happy and shit.
 
ClckwrkOra said:
Narcissists tend to draw big followings quickly.

The only issue comes if they disappoint their followers.

Then their followings can dissipate quickly.
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Your the pussy who accused me and other sherdogger as having multiple account and when a mode proved you wrong, you decided to hide like a bitch after talking so much shit!
 
He talks a lot and he's mostly backed it up. People love lip service.
 
KoChang said:
For the same reason people love Trump. Weak minded people are always infatuated by those that appear to be strong and fearless.
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People are attracted to confidence in general. He does/says things that most people wouldnt have the balls to do. Much like trump
 
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