"These motherfuckers are so stupid, man. They want to say that it's about color, and if they want to say that, they can, but these motherfuckers are so stupid. They don't understand history," stated Bellator light heavyweight King Mo Lawal, who sounded off about those who have been quick to compare the accomplishments of UFC featherweight champion to boxing legend and American icon Muhammad Ali. According to Lawal, those that are making the comparisons don't truly know history or understand the significant role that Ali played in the civil rights movement. Check out what else Lawal had to say.
KING MO ON PEOPLE COMPARING CONNOR MCGREGOR TO MUHAMMAD ALI:
They said, "Oh, Conor McGregor donated 50 Euros to gay and lesbian organizations like LGBT." I think that's cool. That's great! And then they were like, "Conor McGregor does things for the poor." But here is the thin,; Conor McGregor is relevant where he is. He is in the majority of Ireland. He may have been poor and he worked his way up, but AliÂ…if you want to compare Conor McGregor to Cassius Clay, go ahead and do that. They are both good athletes. The only difference is Clay was a champion and undefeated at the time. Muhammad Ali, who Cassius Clay became, was a person that stood for something bigger than himself. He stood up to the government. He was hated. He was an Olympic champion that fought for his country. They wanted him to go to war. I don't blame him for not wanting to go to war. Why would you want to go and defend your country and then come back to that country that you represented and be treated like you're nothing? He had two strikes against him; he was a Black Muslim. That's two strikes against you right there, especially back then when that stuff really wasn't acceptable.
I had some dumb motherfucker say, "Well, I don't like Ali because of what he stood for. He should have been more like Martin Luther King, blah, blah, blah. If Conor McGregor was promoting segregation and separatism, he would be looked at as being racist." Okay, if Conor McGregor was around back in the day, Irish were slaves too. If Conor McGregor came out back at that time and said, "I'm all for Irish being separated from the rest of America because they are being treated like trash; we want to do our own thing. I'm pro Irish." I wouldn't blame him for that because look at how his people getting treated. That's how Ali was. The same motherfuckers talking about they don't like Ali because he was too extreme probably like Donald Trump, straight up! Don't compare Conor McGregor to Ali; compare Conor McGregor to Conor McGregor because he's doing his own thing. Ali is on a totally different spectrum because there hasn't been another athlete on this planet that had the affect that Ali had on his generation. He is an icon. When it's all said and done, there may not be another fighter like Conor McGregor from Ireland or from anywhere. Let these guys do their own thing and stop feeling like you gotta compare them to somebody. Who could you compare Ali to? Nobody! He did his own thing. Conor is doing his own thing. See where he takes it.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]