UFC Legend Admits Conor McGregor Won’t Fight Ever Again After Disappointing UFC 329 Injury
The chances of Conor McGregor competing inside the octagon at full health remains very slim according to former UFC champion Daniel Cormier.
Conor McGregor may not compete again after UFC 329 (Image via NZ Herald/TNT Sports)
The MMA world waited five years to see Conor McGregor return to the octagon. UFC 329 will forever go down as a record-breaking event that led to the most disappointing moment in the promotion’s history. UFC legend Daniel Cormier made it clear that fans shouldn’t expect McGregor to return in the future.
Ahead of UFC 329, McGregor looked really confident and discussed his intention to insert himself into the title picture at lightweight and welterweight. To that end, he issued challenges to Justin Gaethje and Islam Makhachev ahead of UFC 329.
Once the bout against Max Holloway started, the Irishman moved forward to land a jumping kick, which left him compromised. Eventually, the bout didn’t even last two minutes as the referee intervened, much to everyone’s dismay.
UFC’s all-time leader in PPV sales revealed that he was not injured before the fight, and that everything was unfortunate. In further tweets, the Irishman indicated his desire to return. However, Daniel Cormier cannot see Conor McGregor coming back and competing like he used to.
If you ask me truthfully, I am more likely to tell you that it’s not gonna happen than it will happen. He’s very unique, and the whole week showed that. He is the biggest star that we have… I just wonder if he even does try to come back again. Do people even buy into it again and say they wanna see Conor McGregor go at it one more time.
Daniel Cormier via his YouTube Channel
😳🤔 DC doesn't believe that Conor will come back again:
— Full Mount MMA (@MMAFullMount) July 12, 2026
"If you ask me truthfully, I am more likely to tell you that it's not gonna happen than it will happen. He is the biggest star that we have.
I just wonder if he even tries to come back again. Do people even buy into it… pic.twitter.com/oSLvKQVy6t
The simultaneous double-champ achievement of McGregor was the first time he took a break from MMA. He pursued the Floyd Mayweather boxing fight that kept him away for almost two years. Then after returning at UFC 229 in 2018, ‘The Notorious’ had to wait until January 2020 for his next UFC bout.
Due to COVID-19, McGregor didn’t compete again in 2020, and fought twice in 2021. After the leg injury at UFC 264 against Dustin Poirier, he had to wait five years to return. Even that return didn’t go well for the UFC superstar.
Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva are the other two fighters to return from devastating leg injuries to compete again. Even their careers stagnated once returning to the octagon. Weidman and Silva failed to get back to the level they once competed at.
From the look of things, McGregor competing like his prime version is just a fantasy at this point. After people paid hefty money to see him compete at UFC 329, Cormier don’t think fans will see McGregor the same moving forward.
Daniel Cormier will not criticize Conor McGregor for attempting the jumping kick
A major discussion on social media after UFC 329 focused on the extent of the injury that Conor McGregor suffered. The fans discussed whether it happened before his entry into the octagon or when he threw his first kick.

After the main event ended, commentators Joe Rogan, Jon Anik, and Daniel Cormier looked at footages to see when the injury occurred. The first kick that McGregor threw may have extended his knee as he suddenly fell down at that moment.
Some fans have questioned why the Irishman approached the bout with kicks if there was an injury that happened prior or for compromising himself with the first attack of the bout. However, Cormier felt that MMA history proves that such attempts do work, and could not bring himself to criticize McGregor.
There have been times when people did crazy things to start a fight, and they worked. I remember Fabricio Werdum ran across the Octagon and superkicked Travis Browne like he was in the game Double Dragon. Jorge Masvidal did it to Ben Askren. Sure, everyone’s mad because it went sideways. But if Conor had landed it, everybody would’ve praised him
Daniel Cormier via his YT Channel
🤝Daniel Cormier says people should stop criticizing Conor McGregor for throwing a dangerous kick at the start of the fight:
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) July 12, 2026
“There have been times when people did crazy things to start a fight, and they worked.
I remember Fabricio Werdum ran across the Octagon and superkicked… pic.twitter.com/IDyT8zmmxj
If ‘The Notorious‘ ever return, fighters will lead with a leg-heavy attacking approach. These attacks impacted Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva when they returned to compete again. As such, the UFC future of McGregor looks bleak as he will likely never compete at the top level ever again.
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