McGregor's comeback after five years ended tragically in just 69 seconds with a knee injury, prompting the referee to call a stop.

37-year-old veteran fighter Conor McGregor returned to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) after five years, but lost to Max Holloway in just 69 seconds on Saturday due to a right knee injury. The former two-division world champion's comeback ended dramatically and quickly.

37-year-old veteran fighter Conor McGregor (right) suffered a crushing defeat after returning to the ring after a five-year hiatus.

In the UFC 329 welterweight bout in Las Vegas, 37-year-old Irishman Mike McGregor fell to the ground three times within the first minute of the fight, prompting referee Mike Beltran to stop the bout. McGregor launched a spinning kick at Holloway just seconds into the fight, but injured his right knee upon landing. He then stumbled and knelt twice, clutching his right knee, forcing the referee to stop the fight.

After the match, Holloway said, "What can I say? I think I made his knee go weak." He further stated, "With all the hype before the match, it's really bad to end it like this." Holloway also expressed his hope that his Irish opponent's injury "isn't too serious."

McGregor did not give an interview upon leaving the ring, but later posted on X platform (formerly Twitter): "My head is about to explode, I'm completely devastated. I had absolutely no injury before the fight, and I was constantly kicking, landing, and jumping during practice and backstage warm-ups. This injury came out of nowhere, and I'm feeling like I've hit rock bottom. This can only be described as hell."

Holloway said he noticed something was wrong when his opponent backed down: "I could tell his whole demeanor changed; he was yelling, 'Fight! Fight!'"

This match, which McGregor called "the greatest comeback in sports history," was actually a rematch of the 2013 featherweight bout, in which McGregor won by unanimous decision. McGregor has not competed since fracturing his left leg in 2021 against American Dustin Poirier.

Before his injury, McGregor was one of the most commercially successful stars in the UFC, becoming the first fighter in history to hold two different weight class titles simultaneously in 2016. Reports indicate that despite losing his 2017 boxing match against Floyd Mayweather, he still earned over $100 million. McGregor's most recent UFC victory was in January 2020, when he defeated American Donald Cerrone in just 40 seconds.