Win or lose, Conor McGregor is poised to become combat sports’ biggest free agent | Opinion
In case you missed it, Conor McGregor is going to return to the UFC in an actual fighting capacity this weekend for the first time in five years…unless he tosses a dolly into a bus window or something like that.
And what an absolute dumpster fire of a half decade it’s been. From various driving offenses to various assaults which included an NBA mascot and an Italian musician, an alleged assault of a 42-year-old woman on a yacht that resulted in her car being burned and her house being vandalized, alleged PED use, and, of course, being found guilty in a civil case where a jury found that he raped a woman. Lost sponsorships and him being persona non grata in his home country of Ireland have followed.
That paragraph above doesn’t even include anything about his issues prior to that July 2021 fight which are their own story, a combination of which is enough to make Jon Jones tip his cap.
But all of this doesn’t matter one bit when it comes to him making money and he’s about to make a lot more of it — a lot, lot more. Here’s how.
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From all reports, the negotiations for the soon-to-be 38-year-old McGregor to return for his rematch with Max Holloway did not include any contract extension which always seems to be a tradition (concession?) when stars return. From all reports, McGregor has two fights left on his UFC deal and already has his eyes on a potential timeframe for the second one.
He likely will lose against Holloway (I mean, it’s been five years) and perhaps against the next opponent as it will be someone with an interesting name and someone who also competes more frequently. McGregor going 0-2 won’t matter, however, as they are just barriers to a treasure trove on the other side.
McGregor has been publicly jabbing with the likes of Mike Perry, Jake Paul and his forever foe Nate Diaz for years. A common throughline with all three is Paul’s MVP promotion and their relationship with Netflix who LOVE (all caps!) event-based live programming. They won’t care in the least if McGregor goes 0-2 in his final two UFC fights and definitely won’t care about anything in the second paragraph of this column.
What they do care about is pleasing subscribers and putting on big shows. McGregor against Paul, Diaz and even Perry does just that. They want the star appeal and I find it hard to believe McGregor will turn any of those opportunities down. I mean, even Floyd Mayweather needs money badly and would sign up for a rematch in .02 seconds. I could also see the part owner of BKFC perhaps helping out his own bottom line by fighting Perry there.
All of this is to say that surprisingly and unsurprisingly, McGregor is about to become even more wealthy in 2027 despite a likely four-fight losing streak (which would be five of his last six) and an incredibly recent checkered past to say the least — all of this after leaving the world’s largest and most powerful fight conglomerate where he made his name to begin with.
The fight game, indeed.
Since 2011, Josh has been a contributing editor to Wrestling Observer/F4WOnline.com and also hosts the Punch-Out podcast. He has also written for Fight Magazine, Bloody Elbow, Bleacher Report, and other websites. He's a 2000 graduate of the University of Maine, worked in pro sports, and once was an indie ring announcer.