5 times Conor McGregor went back on his word
Conor McGregor is notorious for mouthing off. Whether it’s pre-fight, post-fight, or he's simply trying to start a fight, the Irishman is always talking.
Over the years, there have been times when the former UFC double champion has not followed up on the things he's said.
Here are five times Conor McGregor has gone back on his word.
#5 Dustin Poirier trilogy
In a surprising move to many MMA fans, Conor McGregor ended his third retirement to face Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 in January 2021.
Before the fight, Conor was very complimentary towards Dustin, even agreeing to donate to his charity.
McGregor had beaten Poirier back in 2014 but was knocked out in the second round of the rematch. The upset led to a trilogy bout being scheduled for UFC 264 in July.
Poirier tweeted an accusation that McGregor had not made the donation as promised. This ignited a fiery response from Conor.
McGregor even went as far as to say the trilogy fight was off.
However, he later changed his mind and said that they will settle it in the octagon.
#4 Tyron Woodley beef
At UFC 205, Conor McGregor was at the peak of his mystic mac powers. He seemingly could do or say nothing wrong. Before his main event bout with Eddie Alvarez, McGregor got into a brief but fiery beef with then UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley.
McGregor and Woodley had words at the pre-fight press conference and again after the official weigh-ins. The two also took to Twitter to add fuel to the feud.
Ironically, Woodley let UFC officials give McGregor his welterweight belt after Conor had knocked out Eddie Alvarez for photos in the cage.
In 2019, after Woodley had lost his championship he once again called for a McGregor fight.
He told TMZ:
"I want to fight Conor. I'll fight him in Ireland. I'll fight him in the f-----g back alley of a White Castle...want to go to Russia? Want to go to the TMZ newsroom? Quit being a b---h...let's fight."
It doesn’t seem that Conor is in any rush to face Woodley in the Octagon.
#3 Manny Pacquiao bout
Ever since Conor fought Floyd Mayweather, it’s been rumored that the Irishman was seeking a boxing bout with Manny Pacquiao. Both camps have gone back and forth in the press discussing the possibility of a fight.
McGregor took to Twitter in September 2020, signaling the bout was to happen in the Middle East.
Pacquiao teased fight fans on Twitter before and after UFC 257.
McGregor is scheduled to face Dustin Poirier in July, while Pacquiao is in talks to face Terrance Crawford later this year. Stranger things have happened in the fight game but a boxing match between Conor McGregor and Manny Pacquiao doesn't look likely anytime soon.
#2 Legal troubles
In recent years, Conor McGregor has been involved in many legal issues. The infamous bus attack in 2018 stands out.
Before that incident, McGregor made the news after jumping into the Bellator cage to attack referee Marc Goddard in November 2017. He later took to Instagram to apologize and promise to do better.
Sadly, Conor continued to misbehave and was caught on film punching an elderly patron at a Dublin bar.
In an interview with MMA journalist Ariel Helwani on ESPN in August 2019, he apologized for the assault of an elderly Dublin man.
"I was in the wrong. That man deserved to enjoy his time in the pub without having it to end the way it did, and although it was five months ago, I tried to make amends, and I made amends back then. But that does not even matter. I was in the wrong."
Let’s hope that Conor’s days of breaking the law and fake apologies are over and he can focus on his MMA career.
#1 Retirements
The Irish UFC champ-champ has retired three times so far in his MMA career.
The first time was in April 2016 during the build-up to UFC 200. McGregor was set to headline the historic UFC event in a rematch against Nate Diaz. The featherweight champ had been submitted by Diaz at UFC 196 in a major upset and fans couldn’t wait to see the return bout.
However, due to a disagreement with the UFC over press conference obligations, McGregor promptly retired via Twitter.
McGregor eventually came to terms with the UFC and returned to beat Nate Diaz at UFC 202. At the time the rematch was the highest selling PPV in UFC history.
Conor then continued his historic run at UFC 204 in New York. He knocked out UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez to become the first-ever fighter to hold two UFC championships simultaneously.
Now at the peak of his stardom, McGregor decided to cash in big by fighting Floyd Mayweather in a boxing bout. Despite losing the fight by TKO, Conor earned a massive payday in excess of 100 million dollars.
He returned to the octagon to face Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October 2018. Khabib outclassed McGregor to win by fourth-round submission before a post-fight brawl broke out.
After being banned for six months by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Conor announced his retirement from MMA on Twitter for the second time. UFC president Dana White believed the retirement was a negotiation ploy to try and secure a stake in the UFC.
Just like his first retirement, Conor’s second one didn’t last too long. He returned to face Donald Cerrone in January 2020, knocking Cowboy out in just 40 seconds.
It seemed that a rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov was inevitable until McGregor abruptly retired for the third time (again via Twitter) in March 2020. Once again it was an ongoing disagreement with Dana White that seemed to have caused him to quit the sport.
Conor McGregor ended his third retirement to rematch withtin Poirier at UFC 257 in January 2021. He was knocked out in the second round, setting up a trilogy bout that is scheduled for UFC 264 in July.