Last weekend's Sunday Times carried an interview with Cathal Pendred by rugby writer Peter O'Reilly.
From the opening paragraph it's apparent that O'Reilly has an unfavourable view of MMA, writing that if you saw a typical moment of action from the sport on the street, "you’d call the police".
He goes on to list what he calls the UFC's "only nods to safety" and recalls former US presidential candidate John McCain's opinion of the sport in the 90s. That's an opinion which has become more positive over the years.
In contrast to wrestling, though, there is no faking in UFC, no choreography. The only nods to safety are the tiny padded gloves worn by fighters and the presence in the cage of a referee who will, we are assured, intervene if a participant is no longer able to defend himself. ‘Human cockfighting’ is how it was famously described by US Senator John McCain.
It was this paragraph which John Kavanagh, coach to Cathal Pendred and Conor McGregor, took issue with.
He tweeted Peter O'Reilly a link to a Bleacher Report article which detailed the evolution of the UFC's rules from just three at UFC 1 to today's more regulated fights.
He also advised that it's "always good to do a little research".
Here's more of the "nods" to safety @petersuntimes http://t.co/0jIXctlxOO always good to do a little research :) pic.twitter.com/O7de9wWNMN
— Coach Kavanagh (@John_Kavanagh) June 10, 2015
Picture credit: Ramsey Cardy / SPORTSFILE
