Conor McGregor conquers Vegas while Joshua takes British title

IRISH fighter Conor McGregor took Vegas storm on Saturday December 12, snatching the UFC featherweight title from Brazilian Jose Aldo with a brutal left hook after just 13 seconds. 

The 27-year-old Dubliner extended his UFC winning streak to seven fights whilst making good on his prediction that his pound-for-pound rated opponent, undefeated in ten years and 18 bouts, wouldn´t survive the first round. 

On paper the result was a dramatic shock, but McGregor has cultivated an aura of invincibility since his arrival on the fight scene, with an army of loyal Irish fans and magnetism that makes him arguably the new face of the UFC, especially after Ronda Rousey’s shock defeat last month. 

Hours before in London, Olympic Gold Medallist Anthony Joshua destroyed his amateur rival Dillian Whyte to add the British heavyweight boxing title to his Commonwealth strap. The 6-foot-6 star in the making was taken into deep waters for the first time in career, surviving a jolting hook in the second, before an uppercut had his iron-chinned opponent out for the count in the seventh.

The undefeated 26-year-old from Watford, who moves to 15 victories, all by knockout, is now on course for a world title challenge, with clamour beginning for a showdown with new WBO/WBA champion Tyson Fury, though the Mancunian has unfinished business with vanquished rival Wladimir Klitschko.