Had it not been for Conor McGregor, English MMA star Brendan Loughnane would not be one win away from winning $1million (£788k).
But thanks to the Irishman, Loughnane (30-5, 17KO) has the chance to win his second PFL Featherweight Tournament on Saturday when he faces undefeated Russian star Timur Khizriev (17-0, 3KO) in the final for the PFL World Championship and the seven-figure prize.
However, getting to this point has by no means been easy for the Manchester native.
In fact, he was ready to quit sparring forever in June last year after a loss to Peruvian star Jesus Pinedo sparked some serious soul-searching.
Pinedo, who Loughnane described as ‘an unknown guy from the ghetto in Peru’, caught the Brit clean with a brutal knee and finished him with ground strikes at PFL 4 in June last year.
“He caught me flush and gave me 10 months away from the sport,” Loughnane exclusively told talkSPORT’s Adam Catterall in Saudi Arabia.
“I literally said to myself, ‘I’m not even going to spar again.’ That was my mindset. I’d never been dropped in sparring, nothing.”
However, Loughnane was lured back to the cage by none other than McGregor.
Had McGregor not called, Loughnane ‘wasn’t going to spar again’.
“I was happy, I was travelling the world, I was living my life after Pinedo,” Loughnane said.
“It was almost like the break I needed to have.
“Then I got a 10 o’clock message from Conor McGregor, ‘Fancy some rounds?’ I thought, ‘I’m not passing this opportunity up, why would I?’
“I went down there, ended up having it with him, full-on fight. Pretty much going for it, 100 per cent, me and him.”
Crucially for Loughnane, sparring with McGregor, who won 19 of his 22 MMA fights via knockout, would be a proper litmus test for how his chin would hold up after being stopped by Pinedo.
The 34-year-old passed it with flying colours.
“Took about four or five straight lefts to the chin, when he’s about 80 kilos at best,” Loughnane said.
“I thought, ‘Oh, the chin still works’. Then I got over the hump in my head of thinking every time I get clipped, I’m going to fall over.
“It’s almost like I needed to test it, and there’s no better person to test it than one of the best knockout merchants in the game.”
A major advantage in Loughnane’s favour over Khizriev is the fact he has the experience of fighting for the PFL featherweight title and the $1m prize.
It is, in Loughnane’s words, ‘daunting’.
However, having gone through the tournament format before, Loughnane described it as ‘another day at the office’ for him.
As for Khizriev, Loughnane has questions regarding the Russian’s endurance, especially since a title fight is five rounds instead of three.
“For him, this is his fourth fight in seven months,” Loughnane said.
“He’s not used to it. This is a five-rounder. We’ve seen him get tired throughout the season over three (rounds).”
As special as another world title and a seven-figure pay packet is, Loughnane revealed it isn’t his prime motivation going into the fight.
Instead, it is firmly about legacy.
“Hopefully it (a win) finally puts me in the conversation for one of the best UK fighters to do it,” Loughnane said.
“Like, really taken seriously with that statement. Because that means a hell of a lot to me and was a main motivation for coming back to do this thing again.”