Damien McGuigan interview

Summary

Damien Mcguigan is an amateur fighter fighting out of Fight academy Ireland he's looking to his fourth belt in a rematch or a year so far against Shea Cleland

Transcript (youtube_captions)

[Music] uh we're coming up on one of the most anticipated rematches there is is really Yi isn't in amateur MMA but because the first fight was so good everyone's looking forward to this fight first fight was Shay Cleveland it's my fight the year it's fight week I appreciate you coming and taking your time how are you feeling and how you feeling about running this fight back um feeling good um feeling very confident um there's been a lot put in behind the scenes and a lot of work done on the B up F and I feel like with the improvements have made the adjustments that have been made but I feel like it could be a completely different F yeah and like that I was talking to Shay as well and that's what he said he said he hasn't let up on the training because he knows you haven't let up on the training exactly like he said it like both young if he took it for granted he like whoever takes it for granted but is which this this what I like about YouTu there's respect there's no [ __ ] talk there's no social media presence it's there's two young two of the young best amateurs in the country just going at it is that how you want to approach every fight just put your head down cuz they never seems to be [ __ ] talking from you or or bravado it just seems to be you get your work done you go and respect your opponent after listen I understand like you kind of have to [ __ ] talk sometimes like bu H around the F but I believe like just let your skills through the talking like after our first fight that's already bu up all the hate for us here F just because of our first fight we don't need need the tough [ __ ] we're both young we're both [ __ ] from Ireland we're both on the same rig we're both want to be usfc world champions so unfortunately at the amateur game we're going to have the FED it has to happen on the Amur scene but do not think it's better that you and Shay like that two of the top flyways in the country meet here do you feel obviously you said you've made adjustments and improvements do you feel like you learned much from the fight and you think I think amateur your leverage should be fighting each other at amateur before going pro 100% like like every fight you've always you always take away stuff from every single F like stuff you done well stuff you need to improve on stuff you need to fix but it is a good match up I'm excited to get back in again and you never know we could face each other in Pro one day you never know like I can't predict the future Like Anything Can Happen yeah no it could it could you could face each other Pro I'd like to see that if that's going to be anywhere in the UFC on the big stage and and I think he both have the tools to do it and and what you make of obviously your ision at the minute the flyweight Division I think is the most stacked division but a lot of them seem to be on your team between Kier kouan yourself uh just Kieran he there's so many but there is others um what you make of the division but and other than Shay are you still finding it hard to get matchups or have you just been concentrating on on Shay um I'm not looking past Shay at the minute so the focus is go on and do the job and night and fight sh but before for I was kind of struggling to get my UPS on I'm not sure what it's going to be like after this obviously if I can get as much experience as I can get I'm happy because I'm only 19 I have no rights to do anything I'm just here to get experience because I want to fight the best icon at amateur because what's the point in ping your record at amateur taking all these fights to be like oh [ __ ] I'm a 10 and0 amateur fighter he gives a [ __ ] do know what I mean like when you like what Paul Hughes am record a lot of people don't know no one exactly what's Conor McGregor's amateur record it literally doesn't matter I could be [ __ ] one win and four losses 10 professional go 10 and0 amateurs like just getting ready for the program You're Building yourself you're getting all experiences you're working on things and I that's why I believe should be taken the topest fight possible because no one cares if you lose don't get me wrong we all want to win but who g a [ __ ] if you lose at amate yeah cuz Des only like you named that a couple of people and I couldn't name their am records if someone said to your record now or Shay's record now I probably know it but when she turned Pro not that I'll forget it but it's not going to be top of the mind it's not going to be what people looking at and like that you're G to get the best experiences fighting someone like Shay and whatever the good guys as well because you need to be putting those hard positions uh before you go pro so like when you go pro you don't want to have to experience something that you've never experienced before and I like your attitude on it 100% it's it's the way you it's the way you have to think about it like I'm always I'm 100% confident in the skills and I do respect sh upon him because obviously he's game but I do believe with all the adjustments I've made for camp with with P sh I just feel like it will give me a edge to get the win on Saturday and then obviously if you got the win on Saturday you it's another belt um I want am I wrong in saying you have three bets fit fight you are and Akuma so how would it feel to take a four belt home so early into your am grou I know you've had a lot of fights but you're still like I said 19 how does it feel to have three belts already and competing for a forth well I mean very good because five years ago when I first started um I could grapple whatsoever I was like [ __ ] I I'm never going to win an MMA F I'm going to go back to kickbox and I'm going to stick the boxing and AUM told me just listen in 5 years time if you stick at it you're going to have you're going to be one of best amaters in the country and you're going to have loads of bels and then 5 years from now will have a world title so everything just falls in the place and it works out so we feel very good to get the fourth B and especially in the devonish in front of your home crowd because obviously you had to go in front of of his home Crown but you actually had support there and I think it'll be the same I think he'll bring the boys how how would it be to win it in the devonish in front of your friends family fans and and everyone else it' be surreal to be honest because I haven't fought with davish in a long time all my fights last year have not been on in kids conflict i't F kids conflict in a few years I think think I made my amateur debut on kids conflict that was it haven't fought on it from the end so it's going to feel unreal to fight on it again just to have like my own home support I haven't fought with my home Crow on a long time so I'm excited yeah that is very good but I just want to pick up on something that you said a second ago as well so the way you were saying that you never thought you were going to be that great at not that great MMA but you weren't going to win an MMA fight or a title what would you say to people that are in their teenage years and like that they go and after a couple of weeks they still don't see the improvements would you urge them to just stay because the process does work if you stay at it or sometimes you don't notice yourself improving like you'll be going out I just say stick out and train hard and you get better it's impossible not to get better if you just stick at it and you train hard for it if you Bluff your way through it then people are going to see up so stti hard train hard and and and like you said when when Adam said that to you and he said how good you're going to be in five years you do you look back at that moment now and go that was a moment where I could have turned away and walked away but I didn't I stuck it out and like how do you feel now like that on the verge of a four belt if you if you win like looking back at all those years you think [ __ ] like I could have not done it but here I am does it feel a bit surreal to have to be in position you're in it does because could have been a chance but I wouldn't be here right now I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you right now I'd be [ __ ] taking kickboxing Fates or still doing I probably still would have been active in the K1 seen kickboxing team but I'm really glad I stuck on the MMA because as I was a kid I did kickboxing but the end time go was always MMA was always to get in the MMA so I'm really glad to Stu at it and now here we are n and I just know how much B I'm going to be in five years time because of the gy and training in and high high level my training partners are so it's hard for me not to get better when I'm training with all these animals like as you said earlier like the top three flyweights in Ireland like are me on and Kieran and that's that's only an amateur like we have Jared Burns Pro we have so many talent in our gy so it's a CH SP day in day out yeah no you do have some animals like you've got your one of the hardest hitters you've got obiously Henry car Henry caran as well who just seems to be putting people away in the first round every time Henry like he's a he's a slick Grappler Henry's really good yeah anytime I've gone to watching fight it hasn't lasted long it's it's slick I give it to him he's so slick with his grappling and he's got good hand so he just has that sort of be to be a good F yeah because like that light them up on the feet they want to go to ground all right if you want to go to ground that's cool you getting wrapped up and obviously because of your strong kickboxing background and you're striking uh uh how good you are at striking do you feel that people might think that you don't have a ground game because I have seen the ground game I've seen you against Keen mccarton a gold medalist at imas who had you in a deep armar would you then flip to a triangle do you think people underestimate your ground game if this is obviously Shay's going to come in maybe and think I take him to the ground you think people might underestimate how good you actually are there well me like I know come from a strong kbox in background on obviously a lot of my FS I do tend to keep it on the feet but you got to remember of the D Man tour with like like pop mther like his level of [ __ ] grappl and MMA knowledge ising insane so people can't forget like I'm training with him day and day out so if I can't my grapp not be good my grapple is getting better every [ __ ] day and to be honest I think my grappling is just as good as my striking it's just I prefer to go out and strike but I feel like it be under underestimates mcrl makes a mistake and I could definitely go on a snack but I don't think it'd be underestimating anything to be honest but we'll see Saturday yeah no I I don't think he is I think he's he's ready like you are ready to go out and and create another classic um well I'm going to let you go because I know you're busy I know it's fight week and I know you've lot to do is there anything you want to say before you go or anyone want to shout out and I want to thank you so much for your time I really appreciate it um just um all my sponsors and all my coaches for all the work um my mommy for she was she C all my me leading up the Fate week and well she does it throughout the whole camp but especially on F we helps me out a lot so yeah Noel for our training yeah Rachel Rachel's a quiet one I need I want to get her on at some stage to have a chat but best of luck with I've tried I think you've tried to help me out as well with that one but look it is what it is I can't wait to see this fight the first one is Sans as my fight of the year and there's very few times that I think the rematch can top it but I think this rematch could top it I don't know I'm gonna find out Saturday night thank you so much for your time and I will see you Saturday thank you