Conor McGregor tweeted early Tuesday morning that he is retiring from “Mixed Martial Arts.” – though it is unclear if he really means it.
“Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as “Mixed Martial Art” today,” McGregor wrote on Twitter at 1:18 a.m. “I wish all my old colleagues well going forward in competition. I now join my former partners on this venture, already in retirement. Proper Pina Coladas on me fellas!”
The 30-yeard-old McGregor, one of three UFC fighters to hold championships in two separate weight classes at the same time, did not hint at retirement during an appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” on Monday night.
“We’re in talks [for a fight] for July,” McGregor said on the show. “So we’ll see what happens. A lot of politics going on. The fight game is a mad game. But again, like I said, and to my fans, I am in shape and I am ready.”
He had been in negations to face Donald Cerrone in July. Instead Cerrnone will face Al Iaquinta on May 4th in Ottawa after a dispute over where a potential fight with McGregor would be positioned on the card, according to MMA Fighting. The Irishman, who is the biggest draw in UFC history, was captured in a video last week saying he would only fight as a co-main event if he received shares in the company.
“I’m ready to fight,” McGregor said in the video. “I’ve said that, no problem. If the UFC wants me to slide into that co-main event and help, what that is, me sliding into the co-main event, it’s boosting their brand over fighter rhetoric that they have. There’s no problem with that. But if they want me to push that – and I have no problem pushing that – give me my rightful shares in the UFC company. That’s all I ask. You can put me on the first fight of ESPN-plus, no problem. So let’s see how it goes.”
He last fought in October at UFC 229, losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov by fourth-round submission in a lightweight title fight. McGregor made around $100 million for fighting Floyd Mayweather in 2017 and his Irish whiskey Proper Twelve has taken off.
McGregor tweeted in 2006 that we was “retiring young” after he was removed from the UFC 200 card, but returned to fight again.
While this could all be posturing, UFC President Dana White appears to believe McGregor is sincere this time.
“He has the money to retire and his whiskey is KILLIN it,” White wrote in a text to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. “It totally makes sense. If i was him i would retire too. He’s retiring from fighting. Not from working. The Whiskey will keep him busy and I’m sure he has other things he’s working on.”
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