Conor McGregor isn’t interested in hearing conspiracy theories that he was already compromised heading into his comeback fight against Max Holloway at UFC 329.
As soon as the action started, McGregor threw an ill-fated jumping roundhouse kick and when he landed, his knee popped and the referee eventually stopped the fight. During the UFC 329 broadcast, there were multiple videos shown theorizing that perhaps McGregor already had something wrong with his knee and the awkward landing in the octagon
just exacerbated an existing injury.
But McGregor shut down that idea including the video that showed him off balance as he removed his shoes before setting foot in the octagon that night.
“More nonsense,” McGregor said on Twitter. “I had zero issue. The taking off of my shoe at octagon side, a sweaty foot, without a sock on, pulling off the shoe with the ball of my free foot. It was a brief disbalance. If even.
“I was primed. Fit. Healthy. My engine, my oxygen, my blood, my hr, was never in better condition. Next time I’ll give a little scream at the camera so the illusion of something else is there.”
McGregor also addressed the stoppage after referee Mike Beltran had no choice but to wave off the fight after the Irish superstar struggled to get to his feet as he limped around the cage after an exchange on the ground.
In his first fight against Holloway back in 2013, McGregor suffered a torn ACL in the second round, but he continued fighting and ultimately won a unanimous decision on the scorecards. But the two situations aren’t the same even if McGregor likely suffered a similar injury at UFC 329.
“The first fight was midway thru the second round and we were positioned on the canvas where there was no weight bearing necessary,” McGregor explained. “It was also the left leg which is my back leg in fighting stance.
“When you strike you move onto your lead leg so the effect was less. I was able to strike sufficiently and enter to a takedown. This current one was my lead leg. The right leg. Every movement was effected. It was also not me who was calling for the fight to be waved.”
McGregor has already announced plans to fight again once his knee is healed but he’s still awaiting the full results of his MRI to know exactly what happened with surgery already on the horizon.
Assuming he returns, McGregor would be competing on the final fight of his current UFC contract and he’s given no indication that he plans to ink a longer term deal.
That said, McGregor will obviously have plenty of options for his next opponent but there’s only one name on his mind for that fight.
“It has to be Holloway,” McGregor said.
For now, McGregor continues to rest and recover until he undergoes surgery to repair the damage done from the fight with hopes he could return sometime in 2027.
