Conor McGregor says final UFC fight is 'not to retire' but 'to announce bareknuckle'

Asked to choose between MMA and bareknuckle, the BKFC co-owner picked bareknuckle and said there is a "big chance" he fights without gloves.

By Combat Sports UK Staff · Published Thu 5 Nov, 01:13 UK · AI-assisted reporting

Conor McGregor raises a fist while speaking into a BKFC microphone at a press conference — Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images

Conor McGregor says the final fight on his UFC contract will not be his retirement, and that he plans to move to bare-knuckle fighting after it.

Asked in an interview at the Hype Fighting show in Rome on Tuesday whether he would fight bareknuckle, McGregor said: "Big chance. I'm gonna lay off my gloves in that Octagon for my final UFC contract, but not to retire, to announce bareknuckle."

Earlier in the interview he was asked whether he preferred MMA or bareknuckle, and answered: "Bareknuckle." McGregor said: "I really enjoy bareknuckle fighting. I don't think there's any chance of a boring fight in bareknuckle. Now, I am a mixed martial artist. Maybe I'm just saying this because I had a bad time out the last time, you know?"

He called bareknuckle "very exciting, very dangerous" and said it takes "more courage from me, I think, to get in", adding: "So I'm looking forward to a bareknuckle fight myself."

When the interviewer told him, "Be careful about your teeth," McGregor replied: "Yeah, teeth come and go. Just like a nose, it means nothing."

He did not name BKFC in his answers or give a date. McGregor became a co-owner of the promotion in 2024, and its president David Feldman has said he would "bet the house" that McGregor eventually competes for it, provided he comes through his final UFC fight without another significant injury.

McGregor tore his ACL and meniscus 69 seconds into his UFC 329 rematch with Max Holloway in July and is expected to be out until at least next summer. He has targeted International Fight Week 2027 for his return, which is expected to be the last bout on his current UFC contract, and has promised: "I'm going to actually try to sell the fight for my next one."

He was a special guest at the Hype show, where he put his hands to his face at ringside as Francesco Morandi's bare-knuckle fight with Ali Heibati ended in the first round with Morandi screaming in agony from an apparent leg injury.

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Max Holloway