Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion, Conor McGregor, made an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon last Monday night, where “Notorious” talked about his career in mixed martial arts (MMA).
One that would come to a close the following morning.
While McGregor’s televised interview was actually taped a week prior to last night’s airing, the power-punching Irishman alluded to his eventual retirement, which came in the form of a social media post in the wee hours of the morning (read it here).
“I’ve gone through some crazy injuries, some crazy external situations that many a man would sprint for the hills if it happened to them,” McGregor told Fallon. “But I stood firm, done my piece for the company. Like I said, this whiskey is my baby. I have a lot of great entities. I don’t necessarily need to fight. I am set for life, my family is set for life. We are good. But I am eager to fight. So, we will see what happens. I’m just staying ready, as I like to say.”
McGregor used his fame and fortune as a combat sports athlete to launch his own Irish whiskey label, Proper No. 12, which already set multiple records and put McGregor on the path to billions, despite its rocky reviews.
Widely-considered the most famous cage fighter of the modern era, McGregor, 30, captured championship titles in both the featherweight and lightweight divisions and holds the promotion’s record for pay-per-view (PPV) buys.
For much more on McGregor’s decision to call it quits click here and here.