‘Five years off in this sport is rough’: White, Holloway react to McGregor injury

Conor McGregor’s much-anticipated return to the Octagon ended in disappointment as the veteran Irish fighter lasted only 1:09 with Max Holloway before the fight was forced to be stopped because of an apparent knee injury he suffered attempting an opening flying roundhouse kick.

In the aftermath of the fight on Saturday, McGregor didn’t speak to the media, but UFC president Dana White fielded a few questions regarding the disappointing outcome of UFC 329.

“Five years off in this sport is rough,” White said of McGregor. “I was expecting a one-round war, and who knew what Conor was capable of as far as cardio or whatever else was after a five-year layoff and, well, there you go.

“We’re assuming blown ACL. I’m no doctor but that’s what I figured when I saw it, and doctors think the same thing, too.”

McGregor’s in-Octagon opponent, Holloway, was asked about the strange win he had Saturday night and gave his perspective on how things unfolded.

“I had the man weak in the knees, I guess,” Holloway joked. “All jokes aside, I just hope he’s good. … During the fight, you could immediately tell his demeanour changed and, shout out to the ref, I was trying to tell the ref sooner. Like, this guy’s kids are front row, I don’t want to see him take unnecessary damage.

“But this is how crazy Conor is, the first time he’s on the ground I punch him and he’s like, ‘Fight!’ So, I was like, ‘OK.’ So I backed up and said, ‘Stand up then. Let’s fight’ And then he fell back down and the fight was called.”

And even before the fight began, Holloway sensed something may have been amiss with McGregor.

“Even with him walking into the Octagon it just didn’t seem like the same Conor,” Holloway said. “He was there to fight, but I thought he would be a little more rowdy, a little more crazy, but he looked really, really calm.”

Given how wobbly McGregor was immediately coming out at the start of the fight, White was asked if there was a chance that he may have been injured beforehand.

“I have no idea,” White said. “The day of the press conference, he came running out of the back and ran right up to him and stopped abruptly and squared off with him. They were pushing and foreheads.

“The doctors check them out before they fight and he looked damn good at the press conference and he looked fine at the weigh-ins.”

Clearly not fine enough, however.