Alvarez On McGregor's UFC Exit Strategy

Conor McGregor is likely trying to escape his UFC contract and may face a brutal farewell fight if the promotion decides to make an example of him, according to former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez.

Alvarez, who dropped his 155-pound belt to McGregor in 2016, told MMA Junkie the 38-year-old Irishman is in a precarious spot following his knee injury against Max Holloway at UFC 329 in July. McGregor blew out his ACL on his first step forward and crumpled mid-cage, forcing a stoppage before any meaningful action. The loss left him with just one fight remaining on his current deal.

Former Champ Warns Of UFC's Playbook For Contract Disputes

Alvarez believes the promotion will not simply hand McGregor a winnable bout and wish him well. "The minute you say you're leaving the company it's like there's always a little bit of butting heads," he said, per MMA Junkie. "Are they going to agree on a matchup? The matchups they're going to give him, he's not going to want."

Drawing on his own 2014 exit from Bellator, which included legal threats before UFC signed him, Alvarez outlined what he expects from the promotion's negotiating stance. "So [the UFC's] whole goal is to get you beat in such a way that you have no value outside this company," he claimed. "Are they going to say, 'Let's get rid of our $100 million man and let him go on his way'? It doesn't work that way."

McGregor owns a stake in BKFC and could pursue bare-knuckle fights if freed from his UFC obligations. Whether the promotion books him a favorable final opponent or a punishing sendoff remains unclear. His next fight, whenever cleared medically, will determine if he walks away with leverage or gets buried on the way out.

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• MMA Mania — Conor McGregor could be UFC’s ‘public enemy number one’ claims former Lightweight champ Eddie Alvarez