Post-Surgery McGregor Focused On 2027 Return

Conor McGregor is out of surgery and already talking about coming back.

McGregor addressed his torn ACL and meniscus — suffered in the opening seconds of his UFC 329 fight with Max Holloway on July 11 — and named the fighters he is drawing motivation from as he begins the rehabilitation process.

"Surgery was a success. Now, I'm on the road to recovery. I want to give a shout-out to Dominick Cruz who returned from multiple ACLs to recapture his bantamweight crown, and Georges St-Pierre, who had multiple ACLs. Tom Brady done it. Aaron Rodgers. These are my motivations here. Especially my fighting boys,” McGregor

Cruz rebuilt his career after injuries that would have ended most fighters, returning to win the UFC bantamweight title a second time. GSP came back from an ACL tear and performed at the highest level of the sport. Brady and Rodgers did the same in the NFL. The implicit argument is that torn ligaments are recoverable, that elite athletes do it, and that McGregor intends to be the next name on that list.

The accompanying written message leaned into the same themes with the directness McGregor uses when he is performing for an audience and meaning it at the same time.

"Surgery done. Knee repaired. The doubters can keep talking. I didn't run from the pain. I walked straight into it. Now the real work begins. Comeback season starts now. No shortcuts. No excuses,” McGregor

McGregor is 22-7 and has not won a UFC fight since knocking out Donald Cerrone in January 2020. The Holloway loss was his third straight defeat and his second fight ended by a leg injury. The durability of his career and the wisdom of continuing it are questions he has been fielding for years.

McGregor has already framed the Holloway trilogy as his "last dance," targeting International Fight Week in July 2027. He wants the final fight on his UFC contract to come against Holloway, with whom he holds a 1-1 record. The ACL and meniscus surgery pushes the recovery timeline to somewhere around mid-2027 at the earliest if everything proceeds without complications, which aligns with what Dana White described as at least a year on the sidelines. Whether McGregor can follow that path is the question nobody can answer yet.