WATCH: Conor McGregor gives his first interview since claiming UFC gold

It's been a long road.

'I'm overwhelmed. It was a lot of work to get here,' declared the UFC's newest champion [albeit interim, for now], Conor McGregor. The Notorious believes that he was breaking down fellow title challenger Chad Mendes bit by bit before eventually delivering the finishing blow. McGregor also feels that all the talk of fellow featherweights hating him is just that. 'There is a mutual respect there,' he commented. 'I respect [Mendes]. He stepped up. He showed up. He came to fight and we fought.' https://youtu.be/tjDiZvdD6KA