McGregor announces surgery and vows to complete final UFC contract fight after UFC 329 loss

Conor McGregor will go under the knife before making one more appearance in the UFC octagon, the former two-division champion confirmed in an Instagram statement on Monday, two days after his comeback ended in defeat to Max Holloway at UFC 329.

McGregor, 37, suffered a leg injury that stopped his rematch with Holloway just 69 seconds into the fight — his first bout since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021. In a post-fight statement, he denied the result was connected to any pre-existing injury.

In his Monday update, McGregor outlined a four-step plan for his immediate future. “Surgery. Prehab. Return to martial arts practice. Go again. Final fight of the contract,” he wrote. The precise nature of the injury has not been disclosed, and no timetable for his return has been set.

The defeat capped a turbulent road back to competition for McGregor, who turns 38 on Tuesday. A planned fight against Michael Chandler — his rival from coaching duties on The Ultimate Fighter 31 — was shelved in 2024 after another injury intervened. Off the canvas, McGregor was found liable for sexual assault in a civil case resolved in November 2024, mounted an unsuccessful presidential bid in Ireland, and pursued business ventures including an ownership stake in bare-knuckle promotion BKFC.

Despite the setback, McGregor’s statement struck a defiant tone. “All things work out for my good,” he wrote. “All things are possible for me because I am a believer.”

With one fight remaining on his UFC deal, the promotion and McGregor’s team had been working around his availability before Saturday’s result complicated matters further. Whether the UFC will wait for him to recover and fulfil that final obligation remains to be seen.