Conor McGregor’s popularity has faded – but win over Poirier can reverse slide

Conor McGregor fights Dustin Poirier for the third time in Las Vegas tonight – but he'll have to do it without a horde of travelling Irish fans.

President Biden's inexplicable continuation of the travel ban that blocks EU citizens from visiting America, which has been rescinded in the other direction, means there will be a solely domestic audience at the T-Mobile Arena for this make-or-break fight.

But even if the borders were wide open, just how many would have travelled to watch the highly-anticipated third fight between the two prospective lightweight title challengers?

Around 2,000 Irish fans hopped on planes to catch the pair's first bout, an undercard fight at UFC 178 in the MGM Grand Garden in 2014, and that number grew as McGregor's star ascended.

He drew a packed house for his first Stateside headliner against Dennis Siver in Boston, and became a staple of the Las Vegas strip for his following bouts with Chad Mendes, Jose Aldo and his pair of Nate Diaz fights.

Throngs of Irish descended upon Sin City to watch McGregor pick up the interim and then undisputed featherweight titles in 2015, and they were packed in for both of his bouts with Diaz the following year.

But ever since his historic second title win over Eddie Alvarez in New York, and the subsequent mega-money boxing match against Floyd Mayweather, public opinion at home appears to have shifted considerably.

There is a perception in certain circles, particularly in some areas of the mainstream national media in the country, that McGregor's star power is gone, but that simply isn't the case.

Prior to and following his bout with Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229, which ended with a riot at the T-Mobile Arena having started with an ugly build-up that included the infamous 'bus incident', the media were keen to stick the boot into McGregor.

And certainly, his lack of results coupled with a string of outside of the cage controversies has led to a sharp downturn in public support.

But McGregor was always a divisive character anyway, with his brash style, similar to Irish pop culture figures like Bono or Roy Keane, the complete antithesis of Irish people's lackadaisical, non-threatening demeanour on the world stage.

But he captured the imagination of young people across the country, particularly in Dublin, with thousands of house parties organised across the capital for each of his big main events.

And there is still an interest.

I was in attendance at Bellator Dublin in 2019, just weeks after a video had emerged of McGregor punching a 50-year-old man in a Dublin pub, when he made an appearance to support his friends Peter Queally, Kiefer Crosbie and James Gallagher.

And when he emerged from backstage to take his VIP seat and his face was flashed on the screens around the arena, the roar was deafening.

From the perspective of somebody who was glued to social media comments and snide remarks from detractors in middle class social circles, it was pretty jarring to hear not one boo in a crowd of 12,000 people at the 3 Arena.

He is undoubtedly still a pay-per-view draw in the United States, where news of his indiscretions slips under the radar with the speed of their news cycle and the sheer density of population.

But at home, these stories spread like wildfire, and known facts turn to rumour and innuendo at such speed, with the entire country essentially communicating like a village through WhatsApp, pub conversations and chats in the back of taxis.

And that has, of course, hurt his mainstream appeal.

RTE, the national broadcaster, don't give him nearly as much airtime, and anecdotally, I have found myself to be breaking news to a number of friends when I inform them that he is, in fact, fighting on Saturday night.

With lockdown rules still technically barring indoor household gatherings, and the country in slight hysteria over the coronavirus Delta variant, it remains to be seen how many of the famous 'McGregor viewing parties' will take place.

McGregor's star power has certainly wained over the years, but he is at least active again.

This is the first time since 2016 he has fought twice within a calendar year and victory would propel him into a title fight with Charles Oliveira before 2022.

Perhaps Conor's redemption story will draw his home fans back to Team McGregor for one more run.

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