Conor McGregor\u2019s rise and fall, to a degree, informed the same movement pattern of how MMA was received in Ireland, according to another two-division MMA titleholder from the Emerald Isle.<\/p>\n
Will Fleury will defend his OKMMA heavyweight championship against former champ Martin Buday at Oktagon 81 on December 28th. Fleury looks to have a huge victory here after a big win in late December last year in Prague. That 2024 victory saw Fleury capture the OKMMA light heavyweight title.<\/p>\n
As he prepares to fight a former UFC vet and Oktagon MMA heavyweight champion who will be around fifty pounds bigger than him on fight night, Fleury touched upon some of his thoughts in recent years centered on the waning enthusiasm of Irish MMA media. As the two division Oktagon MMA titleholder expounded upon his sentiments on this subject, Fleury said [via Bowks Talking Bouts<\/a>],<\/p>\n \u201cThere should have been a lot of eyes post-Conor but it nearly feels like a lot of people have turned themselves off to the sport because they\u2019re a little bit sickened by it in a way. That isn\u2019t the sport domestically, we have some really great guys. We have a lot of guys coming up who are like great representatives of the sport and very skilled fighters.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI just hope that in the next couple of years something comes along that gives them the platform that they deserve. Because right now you have a lot of regional shows. Say like in the Balkans, you have FN. Obviously around central Europe, Oktagon are a big crowd and they\u2019re doing some incredible things. They\u2019ve given me a great platform but it\u2019s a platform over there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLike I\u2019m not really that big in Ireland now but when I go abroad like when I go to central Europe I get recognized everywhere you know. I go into Dublin, like I can walk around my home city, and like nobody really knows or cares. Like I would hope that some promotion will come in and create that in Ireland or in the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhere there can be a domestic audience and guys like who are able to fight in decent size shows and make a few quid from the sport domestically. Where it\u2019s not the only option is PFL or UFC because it\u2019s unsustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re not going to come here that often. They\u2019re not going to really give guys a window and right now if you\u2019re a fighter in central Europe and you\u2019ve got a bit of talent, you can develop a fan base and make a living from the sport. In Ireland you can\u2019t. So that\u2019s sad and like I hope that that changes soon.\u201d<\/p>\n