Has Conor McGregor had a title defense in his MMA career before the UFC?
Conor McGregor is one of the few people to have held titles in two weight divisions simultaneously. However, he has never defended a title in his MMA career.
Even before he became the champ-champ in the UFC, Conor McGregor used to compete in Cage Warriors. He became a multi-divisional champion in Cage Warriors as well, but never defended his titles.
Conor McGregor made his first appearance for Cage Warriors as a lightweight against Joseph Duffy at Cage Warriors 39: The Uprising in November 2010. He lost the bout via submission within 38 seconds of the first round. At the time, Conor McGregor was competing in other promotions simultaneously.
The Irishman next fought Aaron Jahnsen under the Cage Warriors banner. McGregor won the lightweight bout via TKO halfway through the first round. He then dropped down to the promotion's featherweight division and faced Steve O'Keeffe. McGregor added another round one knockout to his resume by winning the fight in 1:35 of the first round via TKO (elbows).
Conor McGregor then faced Dave Hill for the Cage Warriors featherweight championship in June 2012. He won the fight via submission in the second round to claim the gold. Instead of sticking around to defend his featherweight title, Conor McGregor challenged Ivan Buchinger for the Cage Warriors lightweight championship.
The fight took place in December of 2012 at Cage Warriors: 51. 'The Notorious One' knocked Buchinger out in the first round to become the Cage Warriors champ-champ. Conor McGregor went on to sign a multi-fight deal with the UFC in February 2013, vacating both his Cage Warriors titles in the process.
Why didn't Conor McGregor defend his titles in the UFC?
Like he did at Cage Warriors, Conor McGregor held both the UFC featherweight and lightweight titles simultaneously. However, he did not defend either of those titles.
Conor McGregor gathered a 6-fight win streak in the UFC's featherweight division after his transfer from Cage Warriors. He challenged Jose Aldo for the UFC featherweight championship in December 2015 at UFC 194.
McGregor executed an exceptional KO within 13 seconds of the first round, ending Jose Aldo's 5-year title reign as the UFC featherweight champion. However, McGregor did not defend his Featherweight title.
Instead, he directly jumped to the welterweight division to face Nate Diaz, just three months after his featherweight title bout. He lost the fight via submission in the second round. Conor McGregor would avenge his loss in a rematch with Nate Diaz in August 2016.
Conor McGregor, while still holding the featherweight title, challenged the then-lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez in a champion-vs-champion bout. He won the fight via TKO in the second round, becoming the first UFC fighter to hold titles in two weight divisions.
Conor McGregor announced a hiatus from the UFC after his win over Eddie Alvarez. While this time away from the Octagon was due to the birth of his first child, McGregor also signed up for a professional boxing bout against Floyd Mayweather. The UFC were forced to strip him of his titles due to inactivity.