Conor McGregor urged to 'accept these losses' as Dominick Cruz blasts UFC star for not showing 'humility' after defeat
DOMINICK CRUZ has blasted Conor McGregor for the way he handled his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
The Notorious suffered a first-round TKO loss to the former interim lightweight champion in Las Vegas on Sunday.
McGregor, 32, broke his leg seconds before the end of the first round and was unable to continue.
The frustrated Irish superstar was furious afterwards and later claimed that the second round would have been a different story had he not injured himself.
He also lashed out at both Poirier and his wife with a series of verbal threats.
Fellow UFC star Cruz watched the scenes, and he believes McGregor will never grow as a fighter if he fails to assess what went wrong in the fight.
The former bantamweight champion said: “After multiple losses like that, you tend to sit on your hands and shut up.
“We’re not seeing that. We’re not seeing the silence. We’re not seeing the humility. We’re not seeing the vulnerability that he put in place to put himself in a position where you may or may not win.
“You’re not exercising the vulnerability that, yeah, you just showed that you lost. This is the game.
“There’s a position where you get smashed sometimes, and you have to accept that as a fighter.
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“That is part of why we do martial arts, is to accept the losses and the wins and grow from them.
“When you don’t accept these losses, how do you grow? How do you fill the gap?”
The 36-year-old added: “There’s been times where I’ve felt not right with my stoppages, but I still take responsibility for the loss itself.
“I still put myself in that position to lose and when you take responsibility, you can start shifting from the loss.
“We’re not seeing that, and that’s what I think is gonna stop him the most from succeeding moving forward.”
Dana White has since revealed the Irishman will face the winner of a lightweight title showdown between Poirier and champion Charles Oliveira.
But McGregor will have to wait until at least next year to get back into the octagon – unless he is cleared by a doctor.
He has been given a medical suspension until January 7, 2022, unless he receives orthopedic clearance of his fractured left leg.
That also includes a minimum suspension for six weeks, and no contact (sparring) until early to mid August, as per the combat sports regulator MMA.
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