After his win over Donald Cerrone at UFC 246, Conor McGregor took the mic and targeted several other fighters.
One of the fighters he threw shade at was the lightweight contender Paul Felder, who was working as a cage-side commentator on the night.
McGregor talked about the “mouthy fools” sitting cage-side, and according to Paul Felder, said “fuck you” as he passed by the commentary fight post-fight.
Felder admits that at the time he wasn’t convinced McGregor was actually talking about him. With that being said, he experienced first hand what even an unclear callout from the Irish MMA star can do for a fighter’s exposure.
“I was there like what? Is he talking about me?” Paul Felder told MMA Fighting. “Some people are saying he was talking about me. Other people were saying he was talking about Kamaru Usman or Jorge Masvidal. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. It got me plenty of attention even if it wasn’t meant towards me. It doesn’t matter. But we’re having fun with it.”
Of course Paul Felder would be open to a fight with Conor McGregor in the future, but is currently focused on more imminent challenges. This weekend, in the main event of UFC Auckland, he’ll fight Dan Hooker in a fight that could set the winner up for a title shot.
“I’m like, guys, it’s a joke,” he said. “I’m not fighting Conor right now, I’m fighting Dan Hooker. Relax.”
Paul Felder will enter his UFC Auckland main event fight with Dan Hooker on a two-fight win streak, having recently bested James Vick and Edson Barboza, both via decision.
Meanwhile, Dan Hooker is also on a two-fight streak, having racked up recent wins over James Vick and Al Iaquinta.
This article first appeared on CLOSEDGUARDMEDIA.com on 19th February, 2019
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