UFC: Conor McGregor announces retirement from MMA; Dana White says ‘it’s been fun’
- ‘Notorious’ McGregor tweets he has ‘decided to retire from fighting’ and thanks fans ‘for the amazing memories’
- UFC president White says ‘everyone feels like’ McGregor during the global pandemic; tells him to ‘do your thing’
The 31-year-old former featherweight and lightweight champion McGregor (21-4) took to Twitter during the later fights of UFC 250 held at the promotion’s Apex Arena in Las Vegas.
“Hey guys I’ve decided to retire from fighting,” the Irishman wrote. “Thank you all for the amazing memories! What a ride it’s been! Here is a picture of myself and my mother in Las Vegas post one of my world title wins! Pick the home of your dreams [Margaret] I love you! Whatever you desire it’s yours.”
Speaking at the UFC 250 post-fight press conference, White said a colleague had shown him the tweet after the fights.
“So I'll remind everybody that we're in a pandemic. The world is a crazy place right now, I think everybody feels this right now. No fans; can't travel to the fights; everybody is pissed off, confused, been locked up in their houses; masks; protests; riots. The list goes on and on,” White said before the live stream cut.
“That's Conor. You know how Conor works, that's how he does things. There's been a handful of people that have made this thing really fun for me, and Conor has been one of those guys. When you look at the star that he became ... Conor's been fun and been awesome.”