Conor McGregor has confirmed he will retire from the UFC next year, but still plans to continue fighting.
The 38-year-old ended a five-year hiatus back in July when he took on Max Holloway, but his comeback ended in defeat after he injured his knee just seconds into the contest. McGregor later had surgery after tearing his ACL in the rematch, and faces a year out of the cage, but has vowed to return to action.
Final UFC Fight Planned
McGregor - who has one fight left on his current UFC deal - is targeting International Fight Week next summer for his next outing. The 'Notorious' recently took to social media to hint that his next bout will be his last. He wrote "How many views did the Canelo fight get? How many in attendance? Gate? Man I outdo ALL of these people in sales. Majorly. EVERY SINGLE ONE. With ease. Maybe even combined. I don’t even be trying."
However, the Dublin brawler has clarified his recent comments and insists he will part ways with the UFC next year in favour of a move to bare-knuckle boxing. The BKFC co-owner recently stated: "Big chance. Big chance of that!
BKFC Debut on the Cards
"I’m going to lay down my gloves in that Octagon for my final UFC contract [fight], but not to retire — to announce bareknuckle. Teeth come and go, just like a nose. I really enjoy bareknuckle fighting.
"I don’t think there is any chance of a boring fight in bareknuckle. Now, I am a mixed martial artist — maybe I’m saying this because I had a bad time out the last time. Really good MMA is hard to beat, but bareknuckle is very exciting, very dangerous and it takes more courage. I’m looking forward to a bareknuckle fight myself."
McGregor appears to have plenty of options on the table after Conor Benn recently expressed interest in a fight with the Irishman. But a move into bare-knuckle boxing seems much likely. The 38-year-old could be set for a special debut without the gloves after supremo David Feldman expressed interest in staging a fight involving McGregor at Croke Park.
Speaking to Mirror Fighting back in September, Feldman said: "Conor [McGregor] has one fight left with the UFC and then let’s see what happens but I would love to do Conor in his first BKFC fight at Croke park in front of 83,000!" McGregor's first fight could come up against ex-UFC fighter Mike Perry. The pair have talked up a potential clash over the years and have faced off many times. While his future remains up in the air, one thing is for certain, McGregor's next fight under the UFC banner will be his last.
