Conor McGregor's highly anticipated return ended in disaster on Saturday as the Irishman sustained another severe leg injury, resulting in a first-round TKO stoppage against Max Holloway in the main event at UFC 329 in Las Vegas.
After slipping multiple times in the opening exchanges, McGregor sustained an injury to his right leg when landing while attempting a left-footed kick, his first of the bout.
It brought an abrupt, shocking halt to his first UFC fight in five years, with his last fight against Dustin Poirier in July 2021 also ending when McGregor sustained a right leg injury, that time, a broken tibia which resulted in a doctor's stoppage.
Holloway (28-9), a native of Honolulu, said he didn't think the fight had really started and called for a trilogy once McGregor is back to full health. McGregor exited the octagon immediately and walked backstage without being interviewed, leaving more questions than answers about his future, as he's set to turn 38 on Tuesday.
“Give it up for Conor McGregor guys,” Holloway said in his post-fight interview.
“What an absolute animal. He kept asking to fight on. You guys are lucky, there’s going to be a Holloway v McGregor 3 now. What can I say? I had him weak in the knees, I guess. It is what it is.
“So much hype for that. We’ve got to run it back one more time. We need one more. For it to end like this, it sucks.”
McGregor, the UFC's first simultaneous two-weight champion, now has an MMA record of 22 wins against seven defeats. He beat Holloway in their first meeting in 2013 via unanimous decision.
In the lightweight co-main event, England's Paddy Pimblett defeated Benoit Saint Denis of France via submission 52 seconds into the first round.
Pimblett (24-4) secured the spectacular victory by initially jumping into a guillotine before seamlessly flipping Saint-Denis (17-4, 1 NC) over to lock in the fight-ending D'Arce choke.
Bantamweight contender Mario Bautista secured a crucial victory, defeating former title challenger Cory Sandhagen by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) to position himself for a potential title shot.
While the bout was largely uneventful, Bautista (18-3) put the finishing touches on the fight with a decisive third-round knockdown to avenge his 2019 short-notice loss in his UFC debut. Sandhagen (18-7) appeared to have sustained a knee injury during a ground transition in the fight, though the injury remains unconfirmed.
In flyweight action, Brandon Royval (18-9) survived immense early adversity to secure a spectacular submission victory, defeating England's Lone'er Kavanagh via a rear-naked choke rear-naked choke at 3:39 of Round 3. Despite being dropped several times in an unbelievable back-and-forth war, Royval rallied in the final round to lock in the choke and force the tap.
In the lightweight main-card opener, King Green (36-17-1, 1 NC) delivered one of the most spectacular buzzer-beater comebacks in UFC history, knocking out Terrance McKinney (18-9) at 4:59 of Round 1.
After surviving McKinney taking his back late in the round, Green escaped to his feet with only seconds remaining. He instantly turned the tide, unleashing a devastating combination – landing a left hand, two front kicks, and a brutal body shot – to fold McKinney and secure the walk-off stoppage at the literal final horn.
