Credit: Shutterstock Editorial

CONOR MCGREGOR has broken his silence on the devastating injury he suffered at UFC 329.

The Irishman returned from a FIVE-YEAR layoff early this morning in the main event of the UFC’s annual International Fight Week card.

Conor McGregor injured his right knee after landing awkwardly following a left high kick Credit: AP Photo/John Locher

He was immediately compromised and unable to put up any sort of a fight Credit: GETTY

He locked horns with Max Holloway in his first fight since breaking his left leg in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier in July 2021.

But just as he did that fateful night, he left the arena injured after damaging his knee just SECONDS into the fight.

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‘The Notorious’, who was fighting for the first time since being found civilly liable for assaulting Nikita Hand at a Dublin hotel in December 2018, damaged his right knee after landing awkwardly following a jumping left high kick.

His movement was immediately compromised, so much so that referee Mike Beltran decided to wave off the contest.

In the aftermath of his loss, MMA fans theorised that McGregor entered the fight with a pre-existing injury.

A devastated ‘Notorious’, however, dismissed that suggestion in his first statement on the loss, in which he revealed he was devastated by his latest injury setback.

He wrote on X: “My head gasket is gone. Destroyed.

I had no injury / injuries going into the fight.

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Conor McGregor was beyond devastated by his latest setback Credit: GETTY

McGregor broke his silence on his crushing loss in a worrying social media post

“I was throwing kicks, planted and jumping, all throughout camp as well as backstage before the fight.

“This came out of nowhere. I am beyond dark here. I can only describe it as hell.”

UFC supremo Dana White also addressed the theory, saying: “We were talking about the guy over here earlier, asking about there being a pre-injury.

“Just on my accounts, the face-off that day is at 80 million views, right?

“So if there was a pre-existing injury, somebody would have noticed it.

“‘He was limping, put his shoes on.’ He ran right at him.

“I don’t think there was [an injury]. “Anything is possible, but he sure didn’t look like it.

And for 80 million just on my accounts, you know, that number’s got to be massive, and nobody noticed anything. So there you go.”

Defeat to Holloway was McGregor’s THIRD in a row and has extended his winless run to over SIX YEARS.