Conor McGregor says he will come back “better than ever” after undergoing successful surgery on his broken leg sustained in what he considers Dustin Poirier’s “illegitimate” victory in their trilogy clash in Las Vegas.
The former two-division world champion’s headline bout at UFC 264 was cut short on Sunday at T-Mobile Arena when he broke his left tibia and fibula when planting his foot behind him only seconds from the end of the first round.
McGregor, 33 on Wednesday, departed the octagon on a stretcher and with his leg in a brace, and was then transported to hospital in Los Angeles. He underwent a three-hour surgery, where a rod was inserted in the tibia with screws and plates attached to the fibula to stabilise the leg.
Poirier, 32, was declared the winner by TKO because of a doctor’s stoppage, meaning the American concluded their rivalry 2-1 up. He defeated McGregor by second-round TKO in Abu Dhabi in January.
Early on Monday, McGregor tweeted: “Just out of the surgery room guys! Surgery went excellent! Feeling tremendous! [Six] weeks on crutch and we build back! Let’s go! God bless.”
The Irishman, now with one victory and three defeats from his past four UFC bouts, followed with a video on his social media, saying the surgery was “perfect” and thanking his fans for their support, both in their best wishes sent online and at T-Mobile Arena.
“The place was absolutely electric,” McGregor said. “It was a hell of a first round. It would have been nice to get to that second round, and then you know, to see what's what. But it is what it is, that's the nature of the business.
“Dustin, you can celebrate that illegitimate win all you want but you done nothing in there. That second round would have shown all. Onwards and upwards we go team. We dust ourselves off, we build ourselves back and we come back better than ever.”
UFC president Dana White has already said he would be interested in making a fourth fight between the pair, although Poirier will next take on lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, possibly in December.
As for McGregor, his recovery will surely be key in determining what level of opponent he will return against should he step back into the octagon. A former featherweight and lightweight champion, he has suffered successive defeats for the first time in his professional mixed martial arts career.
McGregor’s manager, Audie Attar, released a statement early on Monday, saying: “Conor is in recovery after three hours of surgery. The surgery was successful repairing fractures of his tibia and fibula. His physicians included Dr Neal ElAttrache from Kerlan-Jobb, Conor’s long-time orthopaedist and trauma surgeon Dr Milton Little from Cedars-Sinai.
“Both doctors are confident that with time he will make a full recovery. We anticipate his return to the octagon.”
Meanwhile, McGregor’s head coach John Kavanagh said an ankle injury sustained in training camp could have contributed to the leg break.
Poirier had claimed in the immediate aftermath of UFC 264 that he injured McGregor when he checked a leg kick early in the first round, but Kavanagh believes it occurred when his star pupil landed a kick on the American’s elbow during the final minute.
Kavanagh told ESPN’s Laura Sanko during an Instagram Q&A: “A little bit of that ankle injury had been aggravated during camp. We got a scan on it. Did that have a small part to play in weakening it? I don’t know. We were [with a doctor in California] a couple weeks ago to get a scan on the ankle… there might’ve been something in there.
“It would seem unusual that a young, healthy, fit man could wrap his foot around an elbow and [break it] without there being something [wrong] there before. You can play those guessing games all day long.”
Kavanagh added that the series with Poirier does not feel “properly finished”, saying of the defeat: “It’s a bitter pill to swallow. This sport is the highest highs and the lowest lows. We’ve got to take some time to assess what the next move is. Obviously rehab and recovery is where it’s at.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Who is Tim-Berners Lee?
Sir Tim Berners-Lee was born in London in a household of mathematicians and computer scientists. Both his mother, Mary Lee, and father, Conway, were early computer scientists who worked on the Ferranti 1 - the world's first commercially-available, general purpose digital computer. Sir Tim studied Physics at the University of Oxford and held a series of roles developing code and building software before moving to Switzerland to work for Cern, the European Particle Physics laboratory. He developed the worldwide web code as a side project in 1989 as a global information-sharing system. After releasing the first web code in 1991, Cern made it open and free for all to use. Sir Tim now campaigns for initiatives to make sure the web remains open and accessible to all.
The biog
Siblings: five brothers and one sister
Education: Bachelors in Political Science at the University of Minnesota
Interests: Swimming, tennis and the gym
Favourite place: UAE
Favourite packet food on the trip: pasta primavera
What he did to pass the time during the trip: listen to audio books
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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The specs: 2018 Maserati GranTurismo/GranCabrio
Price, base Dh485,000 (GranTurismo) and Dh575,000 (GranCabrio)
Engine 4.7L V8
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Power 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 520Nm @ 4,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.3L (GranTurismo) and 14.5L (GranCabrio) / 100km
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
States of Passion by Nihad Sirees,
Pushkin Press
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHayvn%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EChristopher%20Flinos%2C%20Ahmed%20Ismail%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efinancial%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eundisclosed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESize%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2044%20employees%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eseries%20B%20in%20the%20second%20half%20of%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHilbert%20Capital%2C%20Red%20Acre%20Ventures%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE
Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The biog
Name: Salvador Toriano Jr
Age: 59
From: Laguna, The Philippines
Favourite dish: Seabass or Fish and Chips
Hobbies: When he’s not in the restaurant, he still likes to cook, along with walking and meeting up with friends.
