Ever since Conor McGregor stepped into the spotlight in the mixed martial arts (MMA) world, fighters have been trying to copy the Irishman's blueprint as much as possible.
When McGregor bursted onto the scene with his hellacious trash talk backed up by his ridiculous knockout power, fighters started to think that in order to stand out and receive the McGregor treatment they need to talk smack.
UFC press conferences nowadays have seen a huge jump in verbal onslaught as well as physical altercations. To some, it's enjoyable, but to others it's a complete flop from what the sport used to be.
While some enjoy the WWE-esk antics, hardcore fans miss the days where fighters could respect one another and still go into the cage and put on a fight for the ages. The days of Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, and BJ Penn are seemingly gone.
Today we have stars like Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, and so many others who enjoy being as brash as possible in order to steal headlines and make a name for themselves.
This doesn't seem to be a route that top-ranked featherweight prospect Brian Ortega is too fond of. Ortega has burst onto the scene by defeating some of the best 145-pound fighters on the planet - remaining humble in the process.
With big wins over the likes of Cub Swanson and Frankie Edgar - as T-City was the first man in MMA history to ever finish The Answer - Ortega has emerged as one of the premiere stars the promotion has to offer.
He recently did an interview with MMA Junkie and discussed how a lot of UFC fighters nowadays try to act too much like Conor McGregor (quotes via MMA Junkie):
“There’s only one Conor. Everybody who’s tried to be like Conor, you can tell they’re just fronting.
“You can easily see, you can tell by the way the go in there – you’re just like, ‘Come on. Shut up.’
“For me, I’m just me. That’s what I realized the best thing to be is. When I talk to people, they’re like, especially getting into the sport, (they’re like), ‘Oh, you’ve got to be a character.
"You’ve got to be this.’ And my coach told – and I don’t know if I can cuss or not – but he goes, ‘F-ck that.’ He’s like, ‘Just be you, bro. You don’t have to lie on the thing. You don’t have to pretend.
"You don’t have to remember some thing you made up before.’ He goes, ‘Just be you, and you can’t go wrong with being you.’
“So that’s what we did, and I’m happy I stuck to it, man. Because I’m just me. If I ever get pissed off, I’m legitimately pissed off. So far it hasn’t happened.”
What are your thoughts on Ortega's comments regarding everyone trying to be like Conor McGregor? Do you think that too many UFC fighters are trying to be something they're not? And do you think Ortega can topple Max Holloway for the UFC featherweight crown? Let us know your thoughts on the matter in the comments section below!
Do YOU want to write for GiveMeSport? Get started today by signing-up and submitting an article HERE: http://gms.to/writeforgms