Fighting talk hasn’t always worked out well for MMA man

THERE’S NOTHING like a General Election to throw up a bit of controversy. With microphones, dictaphones, and even just regular old megaphones, thrown in front of politicians the length and breadth of the country, it’s a racing certainty that a chosen few won’t have cleaned out the filter and just start spouting questionable beliefs.

It used to be a dangerous world, as one false move and you were shunned, you were cancelled before being cancelled became a thing.

However, the world has changed and high-profile figures like Trump and Johnson can say pretty much anything and there’s little or no repercussion.

Here in Ireland there’s still some moral compass at play, and usually words have consequences. Maybe one can repent and be forgiven if they are sexist, maybe they can if they are racist, but few recover from openly delivering statements that have elements of both.

Nobody knows if Paddy Holohan will come out the other side of his spat with his inner demons. For those who don’t know, without going into the whole story, Holohan is Ireland’s first

MMA fighter to win a UFC bout in his home country.

He had some success in the cage but when his career was curtailed by a blood disorder, one of his next moves, along with setting up his own gym, was to go into politics. The Jobstown native quickly gained a council seat for Sinn Féin in Tallaght South after topping the poll.

Then, with the party surging nationally, he made some ill-advised comments about the heritage of the Taoiseach, and more about women. Those comments resulted in him being suspended from the party for the last number of weeks.

They say all publicity is good publicity, and it has probably all helped his book sales more than keeping quiet would have done.

Holohan talks about his early life and troubles in and around Jobstown in the early chapters. He talks about his difficult upbringing and touches on, without going into huge details, his troubles with staying on the right side of the law.

There’s honesty to his words but also a feeling he’s holding a lot back too, it’s a restricted honesty. It’s interesting, it’s far from a boring publication, but it’s difficult to feel empathy for someone who often seems to be his own worst enemy.

After the first few chapters the rest of the publication starts to delve into his career. Initially that’s on his way up the ladder, fighting in G.A.A. clubs and small venues for very little money before Holohan gets his big break with the Ultimate Fighter and the UFC.

Maybe the most interesting aspect of this book highlights the relationships Holohan has along the way, with family, friends, lovers and associates, the human element of the fighter if you will, lots of burned bridges but lots of long-lasting connections too.

While it’s tough to get books now, with shops shutting up and Covid-19 bedded into our society like bed bugs in a cheap hostel, it’s still important to shop local where possible, and The Book Centre in Wexford will be only too happy to help you out.

They are operating a call and collect facility where you can ring in an order and pick up contact-free. The question is, do you want to pass over some cash on this offering?

There’s a market for it, there is for everything, but in all honesty it’s probably not huge. The MMA clan will lap it up, but it’s hard to see the general sports fan regarding this as an essential purchase. DEAN GOODISON

Visit The Book Centre on Wexford’s Main Street for the very best selection of sports books.