“The Baddy” wants to be THE guy.
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) two-division champion Conor McGregor finally returned to action after five years away against former Featherweight champion and BMF titleholder Max Holloway at UFC 329 last night (Sat., July 11, 2026) inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Unfortunately, the comeback lasted just 69 seconds.
McGregor suffered another leg injury early in the first round (watch it), bringing his long-awaited return to a shocking and brutal
end in what might be the biggest disappointment in combat sports history.
Backstage, Paddy Pimblett was doing media after his ridiculously quick submission win over Benoit Saint-Denis when he watched McGregor’s fight end in real time.
His reaction?
“Oh my god, McGregor’s done already?” Pimblett said. “He’s finished; the new boy is in town. I can become the face of the organization now.”
Cold? A little.
Wrong? Not really.
Pimblett is already one of UFC’s most popular fighters, and outside of McGregor, “The Baddy” received the biggest reactions of fight week. The promotion is clearly behind him, and after quickly submitting Saint-Denis in the UFC 329 co-main event, Pimblett delivered the kind of performance that people will remember most from the card.
He also put himself right back into the Lightweight title conversation.
Still, Pimblett did have sympathy for McGregor, which he expressed during the UFC 329 post-fight press conference.
“It was sad to see,” Pimblett said. “But that’s the thing about this sport, you have to stay consistent and got to keep fighting. With him not fighting for so long, his body couldn’t keep up with it. Him coming out and throwing that crazy kick and his knee busting — I feel bad for him. He’s put so much into coming back to get back in the Octagon, and that happens in the first five seconds, you gotta feel for him.”
It was a brutal ending for McGregor, who put everything into his return and barely got started.
For Pimblett, though, UFC 329 may have been the biggest night of his career.
McGregor’s comeback ended in heartbreak, and “The Baddy” might have just walked through the door he left open.
For more UFC 329 results, coverage and highlights click HERE.
