John Kavanagh says Conor McGregor hasn't given up on fighting.
McGregor (22-7 MMA, 10-5 UFC) had his five-year comeback spoiled when he blew out his knee on the first kick he threw against Max Holloway at UFC 329 in July, which resulted in a TKO loss just 69 seconds into the fight.
McGregor had an improbable rise to becoming the first ever UFC dual champion back in 2016, so seeing him defy the odds on numerous occasions makes Kavanagh believe a comeback after another brutal injury is possible.
"He says he does (want to fight again),” Kavanagh said on "The Ariel Helwani Show." "I'm just too long around him. I think we're now 22 years around each other, and I've just seen him do too many things that seem to be impossible, and he does them repeatedly.
So, if he says he does, I'm not going to doubt him. We'll see. I guess it'll be next year before he can start returning to MMA-type training. He’s going through his rehab now, and he’s back. He looks pretty good to me.
"He looks to be moving around quite well. He's being very aggressive with his therapy and his recovery, and then I guess we wait to see what happens next year. ... I just don't feel like he's done with competition just yet. What does that look like? I don't know. I think he's got one left with the UFC, but maybe that could be the last UFC fight and then he obviously has his own promotion, which is doing great. It's hard for me to visualize that being it."
McGregor broke his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021, which led to five years away from competition. His return this year resulted in another injury, but Kavanagh sees one potential hurdle stopping McGregor from another comeback – and it's not physical.
"Can he make another comeback and get back into that fight shape? If anybody can, he can," Kavanagh said. "I just think it'll come down to where the fire is, how much he wants it. I don't think, I know if he wants it, he'll do whatever it takes, and he'll do it again."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: John Kavanagh won't doubt Conor McGregor's desire for another UFC comeback
