Welterweight fighters Conor McGregor and Donald Cerrone face off during a ceremonial weigh-in for UFC 246. Photo / Getty Images
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The biggest name in MMA is back.
Conor McGregor headlines UFC 246 in Las Vegas today as he attempts to launch a new chapter in his pro career.
This is everything you need to know about his return.
UFC 246 takes place on Sunday, January 19, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The early prelims start 11am AEST, with the main card commencing at 2pm.
The early fights will be shown on ESPN from 12pm (AEDT) while the main card will be shown live and exclusively on Main Event.
McGregor enters his return bout as the overwhelming favourite with the bookies, coming in at a lowly $1.32 compared to Cerrone, who sits at $3.40 with the TAB.
Jorge Masvidal — UFC welterweight
"It could go one of two ways. Cowboy could start grappling, wrestling, using the clinch to make it interesting. But Conor is one of the best guys off the blocks and Cowboy's not so that could be a recipe for disaster for him."
Israel Adesanya — UFC middleweight champion
"I feel Conor is in for a tough fight, but he has to make it look easy to win. He hasn't done as much media and he is as refocused as I've seen. Cowboy has been fighting so much lately which is good, but coming off two losses … we'll see how that is for him because he has nothing to lose. My bet, Conor by TKO.
Alex Volkanovski — UFC featherweight champion
I'll have to go with Conor. I believe that if it stays on the feet and as much of a fan as I am of Donald, I think Conor gets the win. Conor's timing and accuracy and his explosiveness will get him the finish inside the first two rounds.
Robert Whittaker — UFC middleweight
I think this is a picture perfect fight for Conor's return. Stylistically, it suits him to a tee. That's not saying Cowboy can't win, he's an amazing fighter and has been much more active. I just think this is a good fight for Conor.
Conor McGregor vs Donald Cerrone (welterweight)
Holly Holm vs Raquel Pennington (bantamweight)
Aleksei Oleinik vs Maurice Greene (heavyweight)
Brian Kelleher vs Ode' Osbourne (bantamweight)
Anthony Pettis vs Carlos Diego Ferreira (lightweight)
Roxanne Modafferi vs Maycee Barber (flyweight)
Andre Fili vs Sodiq Yusuff (featherweight)
Tim Elliott vs Askar Askarov (flyweight)
Drew Dober vs Nasrat Haqparast (lightweight)
Aleksa Camur vs Justin Ledet (light heavyweight)
Sabina Mazo vs JJ Adrich (women flyweight)
Since getting choked out by lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in October, 2018, McGregor has never been far from the headlines — just not for competing in the UFC.
He's still been fighting — including with Khabib's crew in the immediate aftermath of their fight and when he punched an old man in an Irish pub — but it was costing him money, not making him any as a man who had perfectly-crafted his career and public image was on the brink of becoming a cautionary tale like so many other prizefighters.
The 31-year-old also faced false accusations he'd fathered a child with another woman and two separate allegations of sexual assault which he emphatically denied but are yet to be resolved.
He also pretended to retire again.
McGregor told ESPN this week he "wasn't doing what I should have been" and too often let perceived disrespect prompt him to react, including when he slapped a man's phone out of his hand in Miami in another incident that cost him some dough.
But you can tell by the comments of his long-time coach John Kavanagh there was genuine fear for the Dubliner's wellbeing.
"It was heartbreaking, there are no other words for it. It was heartbreaking," Kavanagh told ESPN this week.
"You fear the worst for people you care about the most and you fear (they're) going to become that stereotype. That age-old story of someone getting it all and then losing it all. Everybody around, we were all worried."
But about six months ago, McGregor decided enough was enough and made some drastic changes to his lifestyle and approach to training. He brought previously unseen structure into his training, committing to daily sessions at 11am and 7pm instead of the unannounced late night visits he used to make to the gym.
He also found new joy in his home life, crediting his two children, toddler Conor Jr and baby daughter Croia, with "saving" him.
If you listen to his team, the best performance of his life. McGregor has promised to do something spectacular and his coach says he's better than ever. So good, in fact, that if he fought the version of himself that knocked out Eddie Alvarez in 2016 in a fight that's widely considered the best of his career, he'd win comfortably.
It's worth noting the same people told us he'd knock out Floyd Mayweather but their words carry more weight in MMA because they know what it takes to win UFC gold.
Known as Cowboy, Cerrone is one of the most popular and experienced fighters on the UFC roster. He fights a lot — on average three to four times a year — and has more wins and more finishes (knockouts or submissions) than anyone in history.
But the kickboxer from Colorado never quite reached the top. There's some great wins on his record — including former champions Benson Henderson and Eddie Alvarez and solid vets Jeremy Stephens and Al Iaquinta — but he's also lost 13 times to the likes of Nate Diaz, Anthony Pettis, Rafael dos Anjos, Jorge Masvidal, Robbie Lawler, Darren Till and most recently Tony Ferguson and Justin Gaethje.
McGregor presents a chance to re-enter the title conversation but he's a heavy underdog.
For the first time in five years McGregor won't be fighting as champion or for a belt. That's how much ground he lost over the past year and a bit.
Cerrone is an opponent he respects and will produce an action-packed fight, but also someone he should beat and beat comfortably so he can return to the Octagon as quickly as possible as he looks to make up for lost time by fighting three times in 2020.
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