Los Angeles
Conor McGregor made a triumphant comeback to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) octagon on Sunday, after delivering a technical knockout to Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in just 40 seconds.
The mixed martial arts superstar from Ireland — returning to the Ultimate Fighting Championship for the first time since he was battered into submission by arch-rival Khabib Nurmagomedov in October 2018 — overpowered his American foe without ever being tested.
After missing with a first punch, McGregor immediately bloodied a clinching Cerrone’s nose with an upward shoulder strike — quickly followed by another.
As soon as Cerrone stepped back, McGregor caught him on the jaw with a high kick, then buried him under a hail of punches.
Referee Herb Dean stepped in to call a halt to the welterweight bout 40 seconds into the first round at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
McGregor took his record to 22-4 with his first UFC victory since 2016, when he stopped Eddie Alvarez in a lightweight title fight to become the first fighter in UFC history to hold two championship belts at the same time.
That triumph was followed by a loss to boxing great Floyd Mayweather in a cross-combat superfight in 2017, his loss to Nurmagomedov, announcements of retirements and returns to fighting and brushes with authorities outside the octagon—.AFP
