McGregor made light work of Donald Cerrone on Saturday nightSocial media lit up after the brief contest
All eyes were on UFC 246 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night where "Notorious" Conor McGregor was making his hugely anticipated return to the Octagon and the spectacle didn't disappoint as the Irishman burst back onto the UFC scene with a swift dismantling of fan favourite Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone.
Potential future opponents for McGregor were in attendance in Nevada, most notably Jorge Masvidal, who made no secret of the fact he had a "vested interest" in the outcome of the main event of UFC 246. Kamaru Usman was also in the arena and the camera panned to him aiming gestures at McGregor as the Irishman sounded off in a rambling post-fight monologue.
But how did the rest of the MMA world react?
Conor McGregor TKOs Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone in 40 seconds
Conor vs Masvidal next , biggest option for UFC
" Ben Askren (@Benaskren) January 19, 2020
Ben "Funky" Askren, who announced his retirement from the sport last year, offered his view on the next round of matchmaking to his former employers. Many would agree with his take.
THE NOTORIOUS!!!
" Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) January 19, 2020
Boxer Manny Pacquiao, another man who may have a vested interest in the Irishman's next move sent his congratulations to McGregor. He'll be glad a potential money-spinning closing chapter to his illustrious career wasn't derailed on Saturday night.
What a performance from @TheNotoriousMMA but showed great class to console the clearly distressed elder female member of Cerrone's family
" Ben Davison (@BenDavison_) January 19, 2020
Another boxer in attendance was heavyweight contender Tyson Fury, although it might be fair to say, he was one of the few fighters in the house that didn't have an active interest in it's outcome. His erstwhile coach Ben Davison went on Twitter to remark on a classy touch from the former two-weight champion.
HERE in Las Vegas #ufc24640 seconds - but the truth is we did not learn if McGregor has really been affected by the 15 months away… Cerrone was dismantled easily, it would have been good to see the Irishman pressed more, but in fairness nothing wrong & everything clinically
" Gareth A Davies (@GarethADaviesDT) January 19, 2020
Revered fight reporter Gareth Davies managed to offer a more sober take on the electrifying outcome of the fight remarking that we still have little idea how McGregor's extended period away from the octagon has affected him.
He's back pic.twitter.com/TkYr1Rh5jd
" Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 19, 2020
MMA maven Ariel Helwani had a very simple take on the night's action.
This gonna be easy
" Nathan Diaz (@NateDiaz209) January 19, 2020
There's no love lost between McGregor and former rival Nate Diaz. The two stand at 1-1 in previous encounters and a potential trilogy fight was high on a lot of people's wish lists for 2020. Diaz dropped a single, cryptic message after the fight.
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A post shared by Floyd Mayweather (@floydmayweather) on Jan 18, 2020 at 10:19pm PST
And, of course, no night of combat would be complete without Floyd "Money" Mayweather wrenching himself into the narrative somehow. It's all old from the unbeaten boxing champion by now, but still …
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