Mike Tyson has insisted that Conor McGregor's brash and swaggering persona at UFC events is a 'gimmick' and has branded him a 'beautiful person'.
The former world heavyweight champion boxer has spent time with McGregor on multiple occasions and was cageside for some of his famous world title fights. McGregor actually visited Tyson when he was in the UK on a speaking tour recently.
While discussing the entertainment aspect of being a successful fighter Tyson commented on McGregor's 'gimmick', which is something he says everyone in the business should have to boost their profiles as entertainers. During a recent episode of his Boxing podcast 'Hotboxin', Tyson said "you have to have a gimmick".
READ MORE: Conor McGregor threatens to kill English UFC star over comments
He explained: "It’s real, but it’s a gimmick. The only guys that have all the money have a gimmick. Look at Conor McGregor. He has a gimmick. He’s crazy, he’s bold, it’s a gimmick. In real life, he’s a beautiful guy."
Tyson was speaking with WWE's legendary The Undertaker, whose real name is Mark Calaway. Calaway's used his gimmick in the world of Wrestling for years and it helped establish him as a household name across the world. Tyson commented that he had closely watched how Wrestling stars create and adapt their persona's which led Calaway to insist he thought Tyson's natural persona was 'pretty frightening' anyway.
During the discussion Tyson admitted that UFC events tend to be more impressive events than Boxing bouts.
"Boxing is not entertainment, the fighters entertain, but after one fight is over and there’s an intermission, nothing is happening, people are talking to each other.
"The UFC, when they have an intermission, it’s a party. Some people just go for the party, talk, do business. That’s why the UFC is more advanced than boxing. Boxers get paid more money, but the entity of the UFC is billions."
McGregor is currently preparing for his comeback bout against Michael Chandler which is due to take place later this year. September is currently being touted as the likely month for the fight.
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