Conor McGregor returned to the boxing ring for an exhibition in Ireland as he prepares for a return to UFC. 

McGregor has not fought in UFC since 2021, losing back-to-back fights to Dustin Poirier and sustaining a broken ankle during the second of those fights. But he has been teasing a return to the Octagon sometime over the summer and the belief is he is being eyed for UFC 329 on July 11, during International Fight Week. 

In the meantime, McGregor put back on the boxing gloves for the first time since 2019 for an exhibition bout at Crumlin Boxing Club in Dublin, Ireland, for its Good Friday show last week, scoring a pair of standing eight counts in the round that has since been circulated on social media. 

McGregor fought an exhibition at Crumlin in April 2019 over the course of four rounds, and fought his one and only professional boxing bout in August 2017 against Floyd Mayweather Jr.. Mayweather picked up the win via TKO in round 10 of 12 that night, extending his unblemished record to 50-0. And he has since retired from professional fighting to pursue an exhibition career as well. 

McGregor’s boxing bout could be seen as a tune-up for his return to UFC, considering he is the most tested UFC fighter with UFC Anti-Doping thus far this year. He was suspended from MMA competition after failing to report his whereabouts for testing in 2024, ruled out for 18 months retroactive to the point of failure; that suspension lifted as of March this year.

In only a few days, the reveal of Pat McAfee as Randy Orton’s mystery ally has become one of the most infamous moments in recent WWE history. Many are still trying to piece together how this all came about, with reports suggesting that TKO/Endeavor executive Ari Emanuel was instrumental in McAfee being chosen for the role. This was especially provocative in the wake of previous reports that revealed Emanuel had gotten behind McAfee as an overall personality, and was looking to turn McAfee into the next “Sylvester Stallone.”

Now some more info suggests even more ties between McAfee and WWE’s broadcasting partners could’ve helped play a role. Taking to X on Monday morning, media and strategy executive Blake Avignon reported that Netflix had become the favorite to land McAfee’s popular podcast, “The Pat McAfee Show,” when it’s rights become available in the next 12-24 months. Perhaps more notable however is that Avignon suggests that Emanuel, as McAfee’s agent, will be heavily involved in negotiating McAfee’s next deal.

As for why Netflix would have the advantage over ESPN, which currently airs “The Pat McAfee Show,” it’s believed that Netflix’s attempts to expand into video podcasting, and their current broadcasting deal with “WWE Raw,” where McAfee occasionally serves as commentator, would make the streamer a more ideal landing spot for McAfee. Avignon also sees the logic of the move following McAfee’s “SmackDown” angle and recent comments from WWE chief content officer Triple H, who noted that McAfee was “the face of WWE” according to many.

Sources: .@Netflix is expected to be a primary front-runner to secure @PatMcAfeeShow as his next deal window begins to take shape over the next 12–24 months as his @ESPN deal progresses, with @AriEmanuel now involved in positioning his next deal. Between Netflix’s move into video… pic.twitter.com/P9lfK1Oaro

— Blake “Axe” Avignon (@bobby_s_axelrod) April 6, 2026

Ultimately, McAfee’s next podcasting move, and how WWE, Emanuel, Netflix, and ESPN will factor in, is still a ways away from sorting itself out. In the meantime, McAfee looks to be heavily factored into WWE plans unless Randy Orton loses to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 42, in which case McAfee has vowed to never appear on WWE TV again.

Upon his official reveal as Orton’s new ally, McAfee claimed that he, Orton, and the “forgotten” WWE fans weren’t fond of WWE’s current direction, which sees Orton in the background while “two five-five guys [did] a 45-minute Iron Man match 10 weeks straight for no rhyme or reason.” McAfee additionally questioned the lower-than-expected ticket sales surrounding WrestleMania, especially considering that Orton, who is potentially on the cusp of his 15th world title, is still around.

According to BodySlam+, McAfee’s promo on “SmackDown” was one done entirely off script. Based on what he’s heard from WWE sources, however, Dave Meltzer believes the opposite to be the case.

“This is scripted for him by somebody. He’s not coming up with this one on his own.” Meltzer said, referring to McAfee’s line about seeing shorter talents competing in an Iron Man Match. “… If he did that one on his own, that was very, very bad business. Now, I will say this. I didn’t hear anyone saying he went off script. When people complain to me internally about this, it was the idea is bad, not that Pat McAfee was bad or that Pat McAfee went off script and said something really stupid. It was like the idea is bad.”

In order to “save” the wrestling business he’s loved since he was a kid, McAfee further asserted that Orton needed to kill everything, including Cody Rhodes, the current Undisputed WWE Champion. Rhodes later clapped back at McAfee in an unlisted promo of his own, promising that the former NFL punter would get a receipt for his actions.

Rhodes and Orton will clash over the Undisputed WWE Championship at WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas, with McAfee now backing “The Viper.” 

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Wrestling Observer Radio” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

For the past three years, Drew McIntyre has spent most of his time in WWE being one of the most popular heels on the main roster, with his feuds with CM Punk, Sami Zayn and Cody Rhodes eventually leading to a Undisputed WWE Championship win earlier this year. This past March on “WWE SmackDown,” McIntyre lost the title to Rhodes due to interference from Jacob Fatu, resulting in a singles match to be made between “The Scottish Warrior” and “The Samoan Werewolf” for WrestleMania 42, but following the event, Drew believes his character could undergo a significant change.

“After the stuff I’ve been doing with Jacob, I know McIntyre is right back on track of where we need to be, which I believe inevitably is going to lead to big babyface run down the line but I’m not trying to get there anytime soon,” he stated on “Insight.”

McIntyre also shared how long he expects to keep wrestling now that he’s 40 years of age, explaining that he intends to continue to be an active star so long as the fans and his wife are happy with his involvement in WWE. 

“I know my wife feels like it’s going to be a lot shorter than I probably feel it’s going to be, especially with how I feel now and how creatively fulfilled I feel these days. But as long as I’m happy, as long as she’s happy, and as long as the fans are happy with what I’m doing, I don’t see any reason to slow down anytime soon. Especially when I see guys getting up there in age right now and moving as well as they’re moving right now cause we’ve just moved so far forward with athletes.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Insight” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.