UFC news: How one training camp abroad changed Conor McGregor’s life

After an impressive finish several years ago, McGregor is looking to improve even more as he trained in Shinobi MMA Academy located in Portugal.

Former UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor is looking to make his return to the octagon in the main event of UFC 257 after almost a year since his last fight. He is set to face fellow lightweight contender Dustin Poirier to determine the next challenger for the division championship vacated by the recently retired title-holder in Khabib Nurmagomedov.

The upcoming bout between McGregor and Poirier is a rematch of their last meeting held in UFC 178 back in 2014. The match went to McGregor's way after dealing his opponent with a first-round TKO.

After an impressive finish several years ago, McGregor is looking to improve even more as he trained in Shinobi MMA Academy located in Portugal. He shared that he made significant changes in his training and he has been seeing the results of it lately.

“It has been the greatest camp, the greatest weight transition I've ever endured,” McGregor said via ESPN. “It's not even ‘enduring.' I'm embracing it.”

“Discipline, structure — these are the two keys to success,” McGregor told TheMacLife. “You've got to be structured in your work, you've gotta be disciplined. You've gotta be self-motivated. And those are the things I am.”

The changes McGregor implemented in his training camp stemmed from his bitter defeat at the hands of Nurmagomedov back in October of 2018. He felt that he lost because he wasn't as committed to honing his skills and lacked discipline all throughout his preparation for the fight.

He incorporated a twice-a-day training session in Portugal. McGregor and his team committed to doing it on a cycle, three days on and one-off, three weeks on and one-off. During his rest days, the team included activities such as rock climbing, yoga, and fishing for him to have an active recovery, as per his training partner Colin Bryne.

Now that he understands his body and is more focused than ever, Conor McGregor is looking to have a statement win and make his way back to UFC royalty where he belongs. McGregor and Poirier will face off in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Jan. 23.