Dana White Reacts To Conor McGregor’s Announcement That He’s Retiring

Conor McGregor has shocked the MMA world by announcing that he’s retiring from the sport with immediate effect, and though it’s believed this could just be a powerplay to force the UFC to give into his demands for his next fight in the Octagon, UFC President Dana White isn’t flinching just yet.

“He has the money to retire and his whiskey is KILLIN it,” White told The Las Vegas Review Journal. “It totally makes sense. If I was him, I would retire too. He’s retiring from fighting, not from working. The Whiksey will keep him busy and I’m sure he has other things he’s working on.”

“He has been so fun to watch. He has accomplished incredible things in this sport. I am so happy for him, and I look forward to seeing him be as successful outside of the octagon as he was in it.”

White also added a further comment to MMAJunkie in which he continued to claim that he supported the fighter’s decision to hang up his gloves.

“We really have never had a bad conversation since Conor has been in the UFC. You know how I feel about retirement: If u are saying it … you should probably do it. I have never been upset about anyone retiring. When a fighter feels he or she should retire then I agree they should.”

However, it had been known that McGregor was in negotiations with the UFC about his next fight, potentially in July, in recent days, so all signs do still point to the two parties not seeing eye-to-eye on some aspect of those discussions, which has led to McGregor’s declaration, which may or may not be permanent.

Ross launched MMA Insight (previously FightOfTheNight.com) in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts. He's since penned countless news stories and live fight reports along with dozens of feature articles as the lead writer for the site, reaching millions of fans in the process.