Has Conor McGregor ever truly moved on from his war with Khabib Nurmagomedov? The Irishman is the most successful figure in MMA history beyond his accomplishments as a ‘champ-champ’. A man who turned his fists into fortunes. Yet, years after his brutal loss to Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 McGregor still seems fixated on his old rival.

With social media rants, deleted posts, and controversial jabs all aimed at ‘The Eagle’, it all raises one burning question, did that night at the T-Mobile Arena break something inside ‘The Notorious’? That’s the question Chael Sonnen recently put forth in a video on his YouTube channel.

The former UFC middleweight stated, “Did Khabib Nurmagomedov give Conor McGregor PTSD and ruin his life? Is that what’s happening? Envy and jealousy are very real things. Conor McGregor has lashed out in ways at Khabib. The test is to measure whether the things you said after were hotter or were they cooler than the things you said before.”

Sonnen didn’t stop there. He pointed to McGregor’s behavior before and after the fight, suggesting that his animosity toward Nurmagomedov has only intensified with time. How? He explained, “Conor McGregor was very aggressive toward Khabib, placed in handcuffs, and had to go before a magistrate. The bus incident.”

For those unfamiliar, in 2018, Conor McGregor hurled a metal dolly through the window of a UFC fighter transport, injuring multiple athletes—including ‘The Eagle’s teammates. It was a moment of madness that cost him lawsuits and credibility. But according to Sonnen, the verbal assaults McGregor has launched at Khabib in recent years might be even worse.

The UFC veteran shared, “Conor McGregor deleted some of it, many times. Many times he’s gone out on a c—- or booze binge or whatever you call it at three in the morning and woken up at 8am and deleted the things he said. Racial epitaphs and things about family.”

A far cry from the charismatic, sharp-tongued McGregor who once ruled the fight game with swagger and precision. And now, as the Irishman’s erratic behavior continues, the fans believe Chael Sonnen might be onto something.

Fans put forth their theories after Chael Sonnen questions Khabib Nurmagomedov’s role in Conor McGregor’s decline

Many fans didn’t need convincing. To them, the writing has been on the wall for years. According to reports online, Conor McGregor was worth $200 million in 2024. As such, the comment paints a tragic picture. McGregor may have conquered the financial world, but at what cost? Wealth means little if the mind is in turmoil.

“No doubt, he might worth 500 millions in the bank but as a human being he’s completely broke”

Another fan saw a deeper meaning in Khabib Nurmagomedov’s legendary pre-fight promise to “change McGregor’s face.”  The Irishman’s antics during the build-up to the clash had angered ‘The Eagle’ to such an extent that in an interview on the ‘Inspire Me’ podcast he had confessed, “I really wanted to bite someone’s heart. Do you have that feeling in your life? I just tried to bite his heart. Maybe you can feel this. I am ‘The Eagle,’ and when the eagle is hungry, it’s not good.”

“Yes. I will change his face was another way of saying identity”

Of course, not everyone bought into the idea that ‘The Eagle’ was responsible for McGregor’s decline. Some pointed to an even bigger payday that altered his trajectory. In 2017, the Irishman faced off against Floyd Mayweather in a cross-over super fight. Reportedly earning $130 million from the event, McGregor’s fame rocketed to another stratosphere after the fight. Could that have been the first domino to fall? What do you think?

“Yea probably had absolutely nothing to do with the 140 Million+ he made in a single boxing match”

Others also put forth the idea that it was the Mayweather fight that was a sign of things to come. A fair argument, because after earning an unfathomable sum against the boxer, McGregor was no longer fighting for survival. He had already won the financial battle and lost the hunger that propelled him to greatness in the first place.

“It was Floyd Mayweather who ruined his career”

One fan even suggested McGregor’s downward spiral wasn’t about losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov but rather about never getting a chance at redemption. That sentiment cuts deep. Fighters live for the chance to right their wrongs and get their losses back. If McGregor had gotten a rematch, maybe things would have played out differently. But instead, he was left with an unresolved rivalry, and the frustration seems to have consumed him.

“If anything, it wasn’t the loss that spiraled his career downwards, it’s not being able to get a rematch and settle the score which caused the trauma and deep insecurity that he still carries on to this day and will do to”

In conclusion, the debate rages on. Some fans believe Conor McGregor’s finished, a man lost in fame and fortune, unable to find his way back. Others think he just needs the right motivation—a rematch, a shot at redemption, or something close to it. But with each passing year, the dream of seeing McGregor back in the cage fades a little more.

And maybe that’s the real tragedy. Because love him or hate him, Conor McGregor was once the beating heart of MMA. What do you think? Is McGregor done for good? Or does ‘The Notorious’ still have one last fight left in him? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!