One of the most, if not the most, famous knockouts in UFC history came seven years ago when the loud and boisterous Irishman Conor McGregor and Brazilian champion Jose Aldo faced off to unify the featherweight title belts on December 12.

Most will remember the fight due to the short time in which it was over, a short but sweet 13 seconds. Following a step back and sharp left hand counter from McGregor, flooring the charging Aldo, the Irishman then pounced on the fallen champion with hammer fists before referee John McCarthy stepped in and subsequently crowned McGregor as the new king of the sport.

To see Aldo charging in so recklessly and hastily was unusual for the experienced fighter that he was, however, many believe that it is signifying of how McGregor won the fight before it even started. He utilised one of his most effective tools in winning the mind-games over Aldo and making the defending champion angry and tense, which any fighter will tell you is a recipe for disaster entering the Octagon, where discipline and patience are needed.

So, how exactly did McGregor get under the Brazilian’s skin so much?

Firstly, the fight was delayed from July to December and so the press conferences and junkets for the fight had been going on for most of a whole year by the time that they eventually fought. Luckily for us as fans, that just meant more classic McGregor pre-fight material, in which ‘The Notorious’ used humour, threats and all round confidence to unnerve Aldo.

One of the most notable features of McGregor’s pre-fight mind games is his use of humour. Aldo tried defusing the effect of McGregor’s sharp tongue by labelling him as “a clown” and “joker”, but it is clear that McGregor’s verbal onslaughts were psychologically affecting Aldo.

A memorable encounter came when during a TV show appearance, Aldo was explaining that he was not in fear as his father had raised him a strong man, to which McGregor humorously interjected with “I am your daddy. Come sit on my lap.”

The nature of the comment unsettled Aldo greatly, over whom McGregor was starting to gain clear psychological dominance.

‘The Notorious’ was constantly on the look out for any way to display his dominance over Aldo. Before another press event, he took his opponent's belt off of a member of staff and wrapped it over his shoulder before daring Aldo to “come and get it.” At the press conference in Ireland, McGregor once again reached across the table, took Aldo’s belt, and raised it aloft over his own head, to the cheer of the Irish crowd. McGregor had crowned himself as champion before the fight even started. 

Many may think that McGregor’s psychological destruction of Aldo is a reflection of the Dublin native's natural confident personality, however, it is clear that McGregor planned and prepared for the psychological battles. In a press conference in Brazil, McGregor had learnt phrases in Aldo’s native language to threaten his opponent with, such as whispering “You are going to die” during a face-off. Footage revealed shows Aldo after this press conference wound up and stressed by McGregor, claiming “I am really mad, I can’t wait to go right through him”.

Ultimately, it was this impatience to ‘go right through him’ that cost Aldo his title in such a quick fashion.

A now famous interview before the fight revealed McGregor expressing: “I felt when we stared down, I felt his right hand was twitching a little bit which was a subtle tell for me he is ready to unload that right hand but I feel that could be a downfall for him. If he lets that right hand go, I will not be there, I will create traps and dead space inside that Octagon.”

Footage released from McGregor’s dressing room before the fight shows him practicing the exact motion of how the fight ended, mimicking a charging Aldo, himself stepping back and countering with a left hook.

The now 33-year-old has openly expressed his use of The Law of Attraction and visualisation techniques as critical to his success as an athlete and as a businessman.

‘Mystic Mac’ is thus fully aware of the importance that psychology plays in influencing sports and life in general, and has earned himself the right as one of the greatest athletes to utilise psychology so effectively in his sport.