Conor McGregor retirement is ‘marketing stunt’ just like Floyd Mayweather, has three more fights to go
Conor McGregor's latest announcement that he has retired from UFC is nothing more than a 'marketing ploy'.
This is according to boxing and MMA journalist Gareth A. Davies, who joined talkSPORT on Monday morning to react to McGregor's shock announcement.
'Notorious' on Sunday morning, moments after Amanda Nunes beat Felicia Spencer at UFC 250, released a statement which read: “Hey guys I’ve decided to retire from fighting.
“Thank you all for the amazing memories! What a ride it’s been!
“Here is a picture of myself and my mother in Las Vegas post one of my World title wins!
“Pick the home of your dreams Mags I love you! Whatever you desire it’s yours.”
McGregor has previously retired from MMA and returned, and his latest announcement raised eyebrows given he was lined up for some big fights over the next year, including possible bouts against Kamaru Usman, Jorge Masviadal or Anderson Silva, while a rematch against lightweight rival Khabib Nurmagomedov has also been mooted.
And the veracity of McGregor's statement has been further quashed by Davies, who insists the announcement is nothing more than a 'marketing ploy' - with McGregor following the lead of boxing legend Floyd Mayweather, whose retirements and returns to the sport are well documented.
“No, of course he isn’t genuine,” began Davies on Monday's talkSPORT Breakfast. “This is a classic less-is-more stunt.
“He’s reached the stage now where he is not just a fighter, he is a crossover superstar; he’s got 45million social media followers, he earned over $100m for the crossover fight with Floyd Mayweather.
“He has just realised that for a star of his magnitude, he can’t come back where there are no crowds, he can’t come back when we are in lockdown – even though he said he was going to.
“And he’s going to sit it out and wait for the appropriate opponent to come along when we return to normal.
“Floyd Mayweather did it years ago; he was bigger every time he came back from the three retirements he had.
“It’s just a marketing ploy.
“Yes, of course he doesn’t feel like fighting at the moment, but McGregor will say it’s genuine but he WILL be back – there is no doubt about it.
“He’s in his early 30s and has probably got another $150m he can put in the bank with about three more fights.”