Tonight, at UFC 329, bettors will know for sure if the return of Conor McGregor after a five-year layoff, through all rumoured comebacks and media chatter, is the real deal, or a one-off, massive payday.<\/p>\n
McGregor and Max Holloway headline UFC 329 in Las Vegas in a welterweight bout, with the main card kicking off at 9 p.m. EST tonight.<\/p>\n
\u201cI forecast Holloway\u2019s retirement after Saturday night,\u201d said McGregor.<\/p>\n
That’s the promotional, WWE-style theatrics at play. Holloway, 34, isn’t going anywhere. He has remained one of the UFC’s most consistently elite fighters while McGregor spent the past five years away from the Octagon following his first-round TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021, when he suffered a broken left leg.<\/p>\n
Holloway has fought eight times during McGregor’s five-year absence, facing the sport’s elite with losses to Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria, and wins over Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier. Now, Holloway is moving up in weight for the second time in two years\u2014a total jump of 25 pounds from featherweight to welterweight\u2014and bettors are left to weigh how that could affect his speed, power and durability.<\/p>\n
But the bigger questions revolve around McGregor for tonight\u2019s fight.<\/p>\n
For bettors, this fight may come down to one question: Can McGregor finish Holloway early? If not, the advantage likely shifts to Holloway.<\/p>\n
Can he overcome a five-year layoff at 37 years old after suffering a serious leg injury? Bettors must decide whether McGregor’s explosiveness is enough to end the fight early because, if it extends beyond the opening round, questions about his timing, rust and cardio become much more significant.<\/p>\n