2. Turning Both Sports Into “Sports Entertainment”
There have always been fighters who have drawn their inspiration from pro-wrestling. Muhammad Ali based his whole persona off of “Gorgeous George”, a famous wrestler Ali met as a youngster. Tito Ortiz and Chael Sonnen both brought elements of sports entertainment to the sport as well.
Conor took what they did to a whole new level however. His arrogant trash-talking, outlandish behaviour, combined with the exotic cars and expensive suits, all contributed to his star-power.
While this type of “sports entertainment” is great in the short term, it cheapens the sport in the long-run. MMA and boxing are sports; the entertainment is supposed to come secondary.
