Former heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier believes the UFC must try to reverse Conor McGregor’s decision to retire.
The Irishman announced his retirement via social media at the weekend, which quickly made headlines in the sport.
Cormier thinks the UFC and its President Dana White should do all they can to reverse his decision.
“Everything’s just bigger when he competes. And the whole aspect of that is gone when he fights in front of no fans… It’s not worth risking losing him for the long term because you can’t make him happy right now.”
Speaking on the DC and Helwani show, Cormier went on to say: “You gotta make it happen. Again, it’s not worth the penalty if he walks away. It’s noth worth it, you gotta make it work for him.”
McGregor has been one of the sport’s biggest draws since he became interim featherweight champion back in 2015. His fight against the Russian Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018 broke the sport’s PPV record and generated a live gate revenue of over $17 million, which shows just how big McGregor’s fights can be.
His rematch against Nate Diaz at UFC 202 also saw him break the record for largest fight purse after he received $3 million.
While McGregor’s retirement will disappoint many of his fans, they may be encouraged by his tendency to return from retirement. ‘The Notorious’ first retired in 2016 by tweeting: “I have decided to retire young. Thanks for the cheese. Catch ya’s later.”
He then announced a second retirement last year, months after his world championship loss to Khabib. This time, the star tweeted: “Hey guys quick announcement, I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as Mixed Martial Art today.”
Following his second retirement, McGregor returned to the sport to fight Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at UFC 246. McGregor won via first-round TKO, taking his record to 26-4 (19 KOs).
McGregor could be waiting for a chance to fight again when crowds are allowed to return following the pandemic. This could see a huge rematch between the Irishman and current lightweight world champion Khabib take place if Dana White gets his way.