Conor McGregor had his fair share of doubters prior to his rise up the ranks of the MME world, but since then it has been speculated that he could well make a leap to pro-wrestling, and there are plenty who would be happy to see him entering the WWE ring. Although McGregor has often sparred with some of WWE’s biggest stars on his social media, the idea of facing off against some wrestling greats has never been completely ruled out. While speaking to Dan Patrick this week, one WWE legend who could see Conor McGregor fitting in perfectly into sports entertainment is John Cena.
“It’s entertainment. You have to buy into that reality. If you don’t believe you’re piece of that world we’re in or your opponent is a piece of that world, it doesn’t work,” John Cena said. “I don’t watch much MMA or anything. To me, it’s true fight sport, but then a guy like (Conor) McGregor comes along with a wonderful personality and will talk people into the building. You either root for him or root against him and you buy his fight, like (Floyd) Mayweather or (Muhammad) Ali, they talk about developing that great personality and believing in it. The way to make people buy into you as a WWE personality is to drop the make believe of it and make it a reality and believe in what you do.”
“He’d be fantastic. He is what we do,” he added. “It’s a little less predictable. Our surprises are getting people to show up at random and weave the ‘choose your own adventure’ into a different alley. His surprises are getting a few teeth knocked out or getting an operation. Not to say that this doesn’t happen with us, mistakes happen, but in his profession it’s not a mistake. I hope (he makes an appearance) because I want to see it. At my core, I’m a fan. He’s interesting and have a gravity about him. I want to see him perform.”
Cena is not the first professional to endorse a possible move to WWE. Back in January, fellow Irishman Sheamus told Digital spy that it was only a matter of time before McGregor finds his way to pro-wrestling. He said, “He’s teased [coming to WWE] a couple of times. He’s still staying active, he’s a lad who’s won belts, he’s done a lot, so I think he’s that type of person who’s always trying to try his hand at something different. I think WWE would suit him down to the ground. You know, we’ve had a lot of people come in and out, [Floyd] Mayweather came in, a lot of celebrities have come in, a lot of sports people. So I don’t think anyone would raise eyebrows if he came in to WWE. I don’t think it’s if, I think it’s a matter of when to be honest.”
Two-time former UFC Champion McGregor has had a rough patch in his recent bouts, having lost three of his last four fights, including his most recent beating in July at the hands of Dustin Poirier after he sustained an horrific ankle injury in the first round. Whether Cena’s endorsement is enough to coax him to reconsidering his next move is something that we will just need to wait and see.