Conor McGregor vs Max Holloway 2 at UFC 329: All you need to know

Conor McGregor returns to the Octagon for the archetypal clip ‌in 5 years erstwhile helium faces Max Holloway successful a five-round welterweight main lawsuit connected Saturday nighttime astatine UFC 329, closing retired ⁠International Fight Week astatine T-Mobile Arena ⁠in Las Vegas.

McGregor (22-6 MMA) has not competed since sustaining a breached tibia against Dustin Poirier astatine UFC 264 successful July 2021 and has faced respective issues extracurricular of the UFC.

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The erstwhile two-division champion astatine featherweight and lightweight was primitively scheduled ⁠to instrumentality against Michael Chandler astatine UFC 303 successful June 2024 to reason their Ultimate Fighter 31 rivalry, aft the amusement aired successful 2023. However, a McGregor toed wounded forced a postponement and the lucifer was ne'er rescheduled.

McGregor, 37, returns to the welterweight part for the archetypal clip successful ⁠six years. The Irishman is looking to re-establish himself arsenic a rubric contender portion attempting to decision Holloway for the 2nd time, pursuing a unanimous determination triumph implicit him successful August 2013 astatine a UFC Fight Night lawsuit successful Boston successful McGregor’s 2nd UFC fight.

Holloway (27-9 MMA) is making his authoritative welterweight debut aft a historical tally astatine 145lb (65.5kg) and 155lb (70.5kg) implicit the past decade-plus.

Here’s each you request to cognize astir the card.

What clip bash the fights start?

The main paper is expected to commencement astatine 9pm ET (01:00 GMT connected Sunday), with McGregor vs Holloway apt to marque their walks to the Octagon astatine astir 12:30am ET connected Sunday (03:30 GMT).

The prelims volition commencement astatine astir 7pm ET (23:00 GMT).

Where tin I ticker the event?

In the United States, the lawsuit is being broadcast connected Paramount +.

In the United Kingdom, TNT Sports are showing the event.

For a afloat database of broadcasters astir the world, click here.

What person McGregor and Holloway said?

McGregor said helium is grateful for the accidental to reinvigorate his vocation and has nary contiguous plans to alteration value divisions aft the Holloway rematch.

“The OG champ-champ, coming for the triple crown,” McGregor told reporters ‌at Thursday’s pre-fight quality conference. “Sounds similar a hellhole of a communicative to me.”

Following the nonaccomplishment of his “BMF” rubric to erstwhile lightweight champion Charles Oliveira astatine UFC 326 successful March, Holloway, 34, hopes to avenge the nonaccomplishment to McGregor and instantly participate the 170-pound (77kg) rubric representation should helium opt not to instrumentality to lightweight.

“We’re gonna find retired Saturday night,” Holloway said successful effect to McGregor’s assertion that helium won’t “lay a glove” connected him.

McGregor said helium was not pleased with Holloway’s “disrespectful” comments astir offering a imaginable December rematch, ensuring it volition not beryllium needed.

In response, Holloway fired back, igniting ⁠the rivalry adjacent further.

“I’m drowning his a**,” Holloway said.

Holloway during a quality league for UFC 329 [John Locher/AP Photo]

What happened successful the archetypal McGregor vs Holloway fight?

McGregor defeated Holloway via unanimous determination (30-27, 30-27, 30-26) connected August 17, 2013 astatine UFC Fight Night 26 successful Boston.

The combat took spot earlier they became planetary stars and was connected the preliminary paper that evening.

McGregor’s striking proved to beryllium a occupation for Holloway aboriginal successful the fight, and helium wobbled the Hawaiian with a large uppercut successful the 2nd round. But the 2nd fractional of the combat mostly took spot connected the ground, with McGregor enjoying capable power to spot retired the win.

The Irishman suffered an injured ACL during the combat and aboriginal required surgery, which kept him retired of enactment for 11 months.

McGregor, right, and Holloway combat successful 2013 [Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports via Reuters]

McGregor’s past 5 fights

• Loss to Dustin Poirier by TKO (doctor’s stoppage) successful circular 1 – July 2021
• Loss to Dustin Poirier by TKO successful circular 2 – January 2021
• Win implicit Donald Cerrone by TKO successful circular 1 – January 2020
• Loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov by submission successful circular 4 – October 2018
• Win implicit Eddie Alvarez by TKO successful circular 2 – November 2016

Holloway’s past 5 fights

• Loss to Charles Oliveira by unanimous determination – March 2026
• Win implicit Dustin Poirier by unanimous determination – July 2025
• Loss to Ilia Topuria by third-round knockout – October 2024
• Win implicit Justin Gaethje by fifth-round knockout – April 2024
• Win implicit Jung Chan-sung by third-round knockout – August 2023

What belts are astatine involvement successful McGregor vs Holloway 2?

There are nary belts up for grabs successful this fight.

Holloway, ranked 4th successful the lightweight division, is stepping up a value people to marque his debut astatine welterweight.

McGregor’s agelong layoff means helium does not clasp a ranking successful immoderate UFC value class.

Who is warring successful the co-main event?

In the co-main lawsuit astatine lightweight, fifth-ranked Benoit Saint ⁠Denis of France faces fig nine-ranked Paddy Pimblett of England successful a captious contender combat to assistance find who mightiness combat champion Justin Gaethje successful the adjacent future.

Saint Denis (17-3 MMA) aims to usage his high-level grappling to stall the momentum of Pimblett (23-4 MMA), who enters the combat seeking the highest- ranked triumph of his UFC vocation frankincense far.

In the ⁠main lawsuit of UFC 324 successful January, Pimblett fell abbreviated of an interim title, taking a determination nonaccomplishment to Gaethje, who bushed Ilia Topuria to go undisputed champion astatine UFC Freedom 250 successful June.

Who other is warring connected the main card?

Bantamweights volition diagnostic successful ⁠a high-stakes rubric eliminator arsenic Cory Sandhagen meets Mario Bautista. Sandhagen (18-6 MMA) looks to unafraid ⁠another rubric changeable with a win, portion Bautista (17-3 MMA) seeks the signature triumph of his career, having won 9 of his past 10 fights.

In a combat betwixt 2 rising flyweight contenders, erstwhile rubric challenger Brandon Royval volition trial the durability of England’s Lone’er Kavanagh. Royval (17-9 MMA) aims to support his fig 4 ranking against the fifth-ranked contender, Kavanagh (10-1 MMA), who has built ‌a estimation arsenic a unsafe finisher, with 5 of his wins coming by KO/TKO oregon submission.

Veteran lightweight King Green takes connected Terrance McKinney to unfastened the Paramount Plus main card. Green (35-17, 1 NC MMA) volition effort to utilise his boxing-heavy onslaught against the explosive McKinney (18-8 MMA), who has finished 8 ‌UFC ‌victories wrong the archetypal round.

Main card:

• Conor McGregor vs Max Holloway – welterweight
• Benoit Saint-Denis vs Paddy Pimblett – lightweight
• Cory Sandhagen vs Mario Bautista – bantamweight
• Brandon Royval vs Lone’er Kavanagh – flyweight
• Bobby Green vs Terrance McKinney – lightweight

Preliminary card:

• Robert Whittaker vs Nikita Krylov – light-heavyweight
• Gable Stevenson vs Elisha Ellison – heavyweight
• Cody Garbrandt vs Adrian Yanez – bantamweight
• Luke Riley vs Kai Kamaka – featherweight