Conor McGregor is backing teammate Dillon Danis "all the way" ahead of his boxing fight against YouTuber KSI.
Danis, 29, makes his boxing debut against KSI on January 14 at Wembley Arena in London. A training partner of former two-weight UFC champion McGregor, talented grappler Danis hasn't fought in over three years after undergoing two surgeries on his knee. Danis is still under contract with Bellator and had to pay a "hefty fee" to their CEO, Scott Coker, to let him to fight in boxing.
After MMA reporter Ariel Helwani recently questioned Danis' relationship with McGregor, the former two-weight UFC champion made clear he is still on good terms with his teammate and is supporting him in his fight against KSI. "I’m still rockin with Dillon. All the way," McGregor tweeted.
KSI responded to McGregor backing his opponent by insisting that Danis will take be badly beaten in their fight, writing: "I’m sorry but I’m about to do some serious damage to your boy." McGregor was less than impressed as he replied: "Brother you’re a friendly little nerd I don’t care. [Dillon] should be back doing mma if he is doing this little nothing burger match with you. I couldn’t care less about this genre of boxing, I am sorry. Have a good one."
McGregor welcomed Danis into his training camp in 2016 to help him improve his ground game after being choked out by Nate Diaz in his first UFC defeat. Danis' presence helped as McGregor went on to defeat Diaz in their rematch six months later, with the pair being backed to meet in a trilogy fight ever since.
Who wins on January 14 - KSI or Dillon Danis? Let us know your prediction in the comments section below!
Danis hasn't competed in a Brazilian jiu-jitsu match since 2015, with his last activity in combat sports taking place for Bellator in June 2019. The 29-year-old, who is unbeaten in two MMA fights, has boasted that he is being paid more than any UFC champion for his fight with KSI.
“I’m 2-0 and I’m about to make more money than any guy in MMA right now,” he said on The MMA Hour. “It actually might be close to Izzy [Israel Adesanya] and Conor’s not fighting right now. I’m telling you. I’m still the most relevant at 2-0 and I’m about to make the biggest bag out of anybody in MMA, active. I’m not going to say [how much], but it’s way more than anybody. Once it comes out, then you can see. It’ll come out. I’m telling you, I’m making more money than any UFC champion right now."
