‘I was at Conor McGregor fight and one thing left me baffled’

Conor McGregor’s comeback fight lasted all of 69 seconds before he was forced to quit after badly injuring his knee when landing from the first kick he threw

Conor McGregor has teetered over this precipice before and stumbled.

Five years ago he broke his leg so badly he feared he would struggle to play with his four children. He battled back to the cage only via the detours of drink, drugs and a harrowing court case. But his knee collapsed 69 seconds into his comeback fight against Max Holloway and he now finds himself firmly rooted to square one.

McGregor, who turns 38 tomorrow, had promised to roll back the years to his reign as double world champion a decade ago. But he threw a needless kick seconds into his rematch with Holloway and twisted his knee on landing. He struggled gamely through the opening minute before reality set in and he accepted defeat.

I cannot comprehend why he threw such a kick at such a point. His coach John Kavanagh has said they practised it over and over again in the gym, but that is no substitute for an adrenaline-fuelled comeback fight. Granted, most observers felt McGregor’s best chance of victory was an early KO.

But throwing a kick as he did smacked of desperation. Either that, or he was already injured and he threw it as a Hail Mary. Why not work your way into your first fight for half a decade? McGregor will surely be wrestling with such questions now. For the Irishman’s next fight is not with his broken body but with his spiralling mind.

“I am in shock at what has taken place,” he said. “The devil is literally staring at me right in front of my face here but I am not engaging. This came out of nowhere. I am beyond dark here and I can only describe it as hell.”

McGregor had barely hobbled back to his dressing room when fans rushed to conclude he had injured himself before the fight. He appeared to struggle to put his shoes on at Friday’s weigh-in and Sin City’s money flooded in for Holloway in the hours leading up to the first bell.

But the Dubliner insisted: “I was so sharp and ready for this fight I cannot believe what has happened. “The talk of me being off while walking in to the fight is nonsense; I was calm, ready, and confident. I had no injuries going into the fight; I was throwing kicks all throughout camp as well as backstage before the fight. This came out of nowhere. I will overcome this. I will not be deterred, I will return.”

McGregor has one fight left on his lucrative UFC contract. But even if he returns to play salesman again, he may struggle to find a buyer. There had been a huge appetite for this comeback but there may be no such hunger next time.The McGregor era could now be over.