Dominick Cruz says Conor McGregor fighting to escape lifestyle

Dominick Cruz believes Conor McGregor returned to the UFC for reasons beyond money, saying the former two-division champion was trying to escape the lifestyle his wealth created.

McGregor suffered a knee injury on his first strike at UFC 329, forcing a stoppage just over a minute into the bout against Max Holloway. The injury marked the second straight McGregor fight ended by a leg injury, following his broken tibia against Dustin Poirier in 2021.

Cruz draws on injury history for McGregor theory

Cruz, speaking on the UFC 329 post-show on Paramount+, drew on his own career riddled with major injuries to explain McGregor's comeback attempt. "We keep saying he doesn't need to come back because he's got the money, but I disagree," Cruz said, per Sherdog. "I think the reason why he was coming back was to save his own life from the money, from the lifestyle he's been living. I think that he's going to be facing that again."

The newly inducted Hall of Famer and former bantamweight champion said McGregor's mindset will need to reset to where it was before he agreed to the Holloway rematch. Cruz suggested the setback puts McGregor back at square one mentally, forcing him to confront himself without the discipline of fight preparation.

McGregor posted on social media after the loss that he will undergo surgery, then return to training and prepare for the final fight of his UFC contract.

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• Sherdog — Dominick Cruz says Conor McGregor was fighting for reason beyond money