Conor McGregor Agrees to 8-Fight Contract with UFC

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

As Conor McGregor took part in his UFC 229 press conference Thursday, UFC President Dana White revealed the Irish fighter has agreed to an eight-fight contract.

ESPN’s Darren Rovell reported the news Thursday night, noting the deal does not contain boxing rights.

The contract includes the UFC 229 showdown against Khabib Nurmagomedov on Oct. 6 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. No financial terms were disclosed, but per Rovell, it has the potential to make McGregor the highest-paid fighter in the UFC.

“It’s not hard to do a deal with Conor McGregor because we know what he’s worth,” White said, per Rovell.

The deal also includes Proper 12 Whiskey, which McGregor recently released and subsequently brought to the UFC presser, as a sponsor for the fights. The star himself said the drink’s logo will be on the canvas in the Octagon “like [Nurmagomedov’s] blood.”

Both McGregor and White took shots of Proper Whiskey on stage Thursday, via Bryan Fonseca:

UFC 229 marks McGregor’s return to the Octagon. His last UFC fight came in November 2016 against Eddie Alvarez, which McGregor won via second-round TKO. During that nearly two-year long absence, though, he stepped into the ring against Floyd Mayweather Jr. for a boxing match.

Mayweather (50-0) spoiled McGregor’s boxing debut by winning via 10th-round TKO.

Now, McGregor (21-3-0) is set to return to a more familiar environment—and his bout against Nurmagomedov is just the start of things to come.