Who is Dylan Moran, Conor McGregor's main sparring partner for UFC 257?

Dylan Moran is an Irish boxer who is currently helping Conor McGregor train ahead of the Irishman's fight against Dustin Poirier.

Born on December 4, 1994, in Waterford city of the Munster province in Ireland, Moran started boxing at the age of eight. In a documentary released by T1 media, the 26-year-old boxer recalled training with his father in the garden shed of their house.

Dylan Moran tried his hands at kickboxing in his early 20s before switching to boxing in the amateur circuit. Going by the moniker of "The Real Deal", Moran started competing professionally in 2017.

Morning graft @TheNotoriousMMA pic.twitter.com/3v7Z4gDJAw

— Dylan Moran (@pro_dylanmoran) January 9, 2021

The Waterford native earned his first professional victory in his debut against Chris Jenkinson in Manchester, England. In just over an year, Moran stepped into the boxing ring on six different occasions, winning all of his respective outings.

By March of 2019, Dylan Moran boasted an impressive record of 10-0 which summoned him a contract from America, where he went to fight Dennis Okoth in a losing effort after he got knocked out in the third round.

Dylan Moran says boxing is the loneliest sport in the world

It was tough for Dylan Moran to swallow his loss against Dennis Okoth. Moran noted that boxing is the loneliest sport in the world, and he almost decided to quit the sport before eventually finding the motivation to continue.

"I've always heard the same, "boxing's the loneliest sport in the world", and it was the few days that followed after that I really realized. It really hit me, we came home from America and you know people go their separate ways after that. Everyone have their own lives to get on with, but boxing was my life, essentially. When I unpacked the case and everyone went their separate ways... I sat on the chair and I've never cried at funerals or relationships and then I just burst into tears for the first time ever," Moran told T1 media.

Dylan Moran was then offered to spar the then WBC International light-middleweight champion Abass Baraou in Liechtenstein, Germany, and the Irish boxer hasn't looked back since.

His course to redemption started with a win over Michael Likalu, and he emerged victorious against four more opponents on the back of that. His latest win was against David Bency in November, 2020.

Moran has also been sparring UFC superstar and fellow countryman, Conor McGregor. 'The Notorious' was impressed with the 26-year-old whom he referred to as a "phenomenally exciting Irish talent", following which, YouTube star Jake Paul took a dig at Dylan Moran saying that he may not be so phenomenal after all.

Very tough! I got a nice a shot that clipped the nose upward and made it bleed. The rounds were super close tho. Razor! Dylan is one of the better boxers I’ve ever shared the ring with. A phenomenally exciting Irish talent!

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) January 9, 2021