It wasn’t the birthday celebration that he expected, but Conor McGregor had a message to fans following a highly disappointing UFC 329 main event.
The now 38-year-old McGregor posted a video with his wife, Dee Devlin, as they were testing a new energy drink when McGregor appeared to get emotional before telling his fans, “We will be back,” following the recent right leg injury he sustained in the opening seconds against Max Holloway.
McGregor then made the sign of the cross to indicate he was praying and appeared teary-eyed before ending the video.
The Irish-born superstar has had a nightmare few days. During the fight on July 11, he opened up with a jumping switch kick to the head of Holloway, which did not land properly and appeared to result in a torn ligament in his knee.
On the positive side, McGregor does not appear to be in any sort of air cast on that right knee. So, it is likely that he avoided the worst.
UFC President Dana White told reporters that the UFC “assumes it’s a blown ACL,” citing their doctors’ view after the fact.
The no air-cast would, in theory, rule out a complete knee reconstruction, but there is still plenty of damage that could be under the surface to his ACL, MCL, and meniscus.
A torn meniscus has a relatively short recovery time of three to six months, while a torn ACL or MCL would result in a year-long recovery process and possibly more.
McGregor has one fight left on his UFC contract before he is expected to enter free agency, where there will be a number of suitors that will show interest, although this injury surely drives a wrench into that plan.
He had previously been expected to finish out his last fight on his contract in April 2027, but it is unclear if that’s even possible now, given that this is his third major leg injury in his career.
