CONOR MCGREGOR ANNOUNCES SURGERY AFTER UFC 329 INJURY

"The Notorious" Wrote On Social Media About The Injury And His Plans For The Future

Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor announced he’ll undergo surgery following a knee injury sustained during the main event of UFC 329.

McGregor ended a five-year hiatus when he returned to the Octagon at T-Mobile Arena on July 11. But his main event fight with former featherweight and BMF champion Max Holloway lasted just 69 seconds when a knee injury sustained in the bout’s opening seconds proved too much to overcome and referee Mike Beltran was forced to wave off the contest.

Immediately following the bout, McGregor shared an update to his followers on social media.

“My head gasket is gone. Destroyed,” he wrote on X.

“I had no injury / injuries going into the fight. I was throwing kicks, planted and jumping, all throughout camp as well as backstage before the fight. This came out of nowhere. I am beyond dark here. I can only describe it as hell.”

McGregor continued and directly addressed suggestions online that he was carrying an injury into the bout.

“I was so sharp and so ready for this fight, I cannot believe what has happened,” he wrote.

“The talk of me being off while walking in to the fight is nonsense. I was calm, ready, and confident. I am in shock what has taken place. The devil is literally staring at me right in front of my face here. I am not engaging. I will be at church tomorrow.”

McGregor then defiantly declared that he will fight back from his latest injury setback to return to the Octagon again.

“I will overcome this. I will not be deterred. I will return.”

Speaking to reporters backstage at the UFC 329 post-fight press conference, UFC President and CEO Dana White offered his thoughts on McGregor’s situation.

“Listen, everybody who knows anything about the fight business – and it’s been a big topic of discussion leading up to this fight – five years off, in this sport, is rough,” he said.

“Who knew what Conor was capable of as far as cardio, or whatever else, after a five-year layoff. And, well, there you go.

“We’re assuming [he sustained a] blown ACL. I’m no doctor, but that’s what I figured when I saw it, and the doctors think the same thing, too.”

Conor McGregor is consoled by Bruce Buffer after suffering a loss against Max Holloway in a welterweight fight during the UFC 329 event at T-Mobile Arena on July 11, 2026 in Las Vegas, NV (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

White said he wasn’t sure what the future held for McGregor, but he didn’t have to wait long for “The Notorious” to make clear his plans as the Irishman posted an update to his Instagram on Monday.

“Surgery. Prehab. Return to martial arts practice. Go again,” he wrote on X.

- SIMON HEAD, ON X: @SIMONHEADSPORT

MAX HALLOWAY QUESTIONS ILIA TOPURIA PARADING AROUND WITH UFC AND 'BMF' TITLES, TOPURIA RESPONDS

Max Holloway was the “BMF” champion. Ilia Topuria knocked him out. So Topuria is the BMF champion now, right?

Apparently it’s not that simple, as Topuria’s incredible knockout of Holloway in the UFC 308 main event only secured Topuria’s featherweight championship. Holloway won the BMF title with a fifth-round KO of Justin Gaethje this past April, but UFC CEO Dana White never stated that Holloway’s title was on the line Saturday. White later told reporters Holloway is still the BMF even after the loss.

None of that stopped Topuria from parading around with two titles after beating Holloway, which “Blessed” was asked about at the evening’s post-fight press conference.

“Could you imagine [lightweight champion] Islam [Makhachev] walking around with two belts after knocking out [featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski]?” Holloway said. “Let that sink in. The belt was in a different weight class for a different reason. I think the fans make it happen, if the UFC really wanted to make it happen they would have put it up, but Dana said what he said, so he’s the boss man.”

Topuria was also asked why he was waltzing around with the BMF title in addition to his UFC title and he wondered why it wasn’t up for grabs in the first place.

“I never understand why they didn’t put the BMF belt on the line,” Topuria said. “It has to be on the line since the first day, but they don’t want to make it official, I’m going to make it official by myself.”

“It’s going to be a little bit weird for them to promote him as a BMF, but is what it is, no problem,” he added. “I’m going to keep it in my house. … Now, I’m the new baddest motherf*cker world champion.”

Prior to fighting Holloway, Topuria suggested he could challenge for titles in multiple divisions, targeting bouts with welterweight champion Belal Muhammad and lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.

Holloway was asked if he thought Topuria could get Islam next, but he still sees options at 145 pounds for Topuria.

“I don’t know,” Holloway said. “I saw Dana White talk about it, Dana White said that Ilia got a lot of contenders here, so we see what happens. Certain situations come up for certain fighters because of certain workload that they do, so at the end of the day if he gets it that’s cool, but probably not. He has Volk and Diego [Lopes] ramming down the door right now, so I think they might keep him down there.”

“It’s hard to go against Islam,” Holloway said when asked to evaluate the potential matchup. “His fighting style is a tough one. He likes wrestling, he likes striking now, he’s falling in love with his striking, so it’s hard to win against Islam.”

- Alexander K. Lee | @AlexanderKLee