McGregor kicking Cerrone (photo via YouTube)

By FCF Staff

Donald Cerrone has admitted in the past that he can be a slow starter in fights, or that he’s had trouble getting into fight mode. Now the fan favorite’s reporting that “Cowboy” didn’t show up for his bout with Conor McGregor.

Cerrone faced McGregor in the headliner of UFC 246 this past January, and the latter quickly finished him in just 40 seconds. While talking to ESPN more recently, Cerrone had this to say about the crushing loss (quotes via MMA Junkie).

“Donald showed up, ‘Cowboy’ wasn’t there,” Cerrone said. “Wrong guy showed up. Couldn’t get going, couldn’t get excited, couldn’t get fired up. Didn’t want to be there. Biggest fight, all the attention, my time to shine, I didn’t want to be there. It was crazy, man. I don’t know why, I don’t know how, I don’t know how to change that but it sucks, man. Sometimes I’m ready, I’m fired up, I’m ready to go, sometimes I get there I’m like, ‘Man, I don’t want to be there,’ so don’t know, no idea.”

“Two days before the fight I was just like, ‘Ah man,’ It was just hard. But when I showed up there that morning it was like, ‘Man, (expletive),’ like I don’t. I just wasn’t feeling it.”

The 37-year-old Cerrone (36-14) is booked to fight Anthony Pettis (22-10) at UFC 249, May 9th.