Conor McGregor has revealed the ‘atrocious’ UFC fighter he wants to face after his comeback fight against Max Holloway in July.

‘The Notorious’ will make his long-awaited return to the Octagon next month in which he will face Holloway – 13 years after their first meeting, which McGregor won by decision.

The Irish superstar is coming off the back of a five-year hiatus, with his last bout in 2021 against Dustin Poirier leaving the Irishman with a broken leg, as well as a second loss to the American on his UFC record.

McGregor vs Holloway 2 Explored

Holloway also comes into UFC 329 following a defeat, having lost a one-sided decision against Charles Oliveira back in March at UFC 326.

Alongside McGregor, Max is considered one of the greatest featherweights of all time, having also had success at lightweight, although this fight with McGregor will take place at welterweight, where the Irishman has experience and Holloway does not.

McGregor is by far the UFC’s most successful commercial selling superstar, due to his outlandish antics and the amount of records his career has shattered.

Speaking earlier this month, UFC CEO Dana White hailed McGregor’s extraordinary drawing power, despite not having fought for so long.

Dana explained: “Listen, Conor, you guys know as well as I do. I mean, he’s a powerhouse, man.

“When he’s involved, I mean, tickets, as soon as they went on sale, you know, went flying. This should break the gate [ticket sales] record.”

Conor McGregor Eyes Fight With Reigning UFC Champion After Facing Holloway

Many have expressed doubts over whether McGregor will still be able to deliver in the Octagon after such a long absence, but the 37-year-old is so confident of victory that he has already started targetting his next opponent.

During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, McGregor claimed one of the UFC’s newest champions had shown themselves to be “atrocious” at times and back himself to “tee off” on the current titleholder.

Justin Gaethje pulled off one of the greatest UFC upsets in recent memory at UFC Freedom 250 on Sunday night, as he defeated Ilia Topuria by corner stoppage to hand the adopted Spaniard the first loss of his stellar career.

Gaethje now reigns as the undisputed UFC Lightweight Champion, but McGregor is confident of defeating ‘The Highlight’.

“When Gaethje is on, he’s good, he’s okay. But when he’s off, he’s atrocious,” McGregor said about the American. “I fancy him, handily. I fancy teeing off on Gaethje.”

McGregor Slams “Ridiculous” UFC Schedule

While McGregor is happy with how the landscape looks in terms of potential opposition for the final two fights on his current UFC deal, he is less happy about the timing of his second bout.

According to the man himself, his next fight after Holloway at UFC 329 isn’t set to take place for the best part of a year.

“Right now I am contracted and I have both dates. I have both dates for my fights. I have July 11 – when would you think they would put me back in, when would you think?” McGregor asked Helwani.

“April 2027. It’s almost a year later. That’s ridiculous to me. This is the way the contract was done.”

McGregor clearly has a strong desire to fight sooner following his bout with Holloway, with him and Helwani agreeing that a date like January 2027 would make more sense.

“I’m like, huh? Just give me the f***ing contract, it gets to that stage. I have July 11, it’s only around the corner.”

“Bring it on, baby. The Mac is back and I’m going to put on a show here in this fight.”

Tottenham Hotspur have opened club-to-club talks to sign the fastest player in Serie A alongside Sandro Tonali, according to journalist Damiano Er Faina.

Tottenham chiefs are on a roll in the transfer market as they look to significantly strengthen a side that has underperformed massively in the last two seasons.

Spurs were facing relegation to the Championship on the final days of the Premier League campaign, and ENIC know they cannot afford to repeat it and now is the time they must surge back up the standings under Roberto De Zerbi.

They are already backing the Italian in a big way, with deals already announced for Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi to join the north Londoners on free transfers.

Tottenham have also reached a full agreement to sign Brighton and Hove Albion centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke, who De Zerbi worked with during his time at the south coast side, as Spurs aim to completely transform a defence that simply hasn’t been good enough for years now.

Spurs officials are looking at other positions too, with Fabrizio Romano confirming that the club is working on two midfield deals in Joao Palhinha and Sandro Tonali, while they are also in talks to sign Manchester City winger Savinho.

Tottenham Swoop for Marco Palestra

via Reuters

Tottenham are currently working on deals to sign Palhinha, Tonali and Savinho, but Damiano Er Faina has added another name to the list in Atalanta’s Marco Palestra.

Posting on X, Er Faina claims that Spurs are in talks with both the player and his club over a summer move.

The 21-year-old is in demand following a successful season-long loan spell with Cagliari in Serie A, with champions Inter Milan heavily linked with a move for the right-back.

Palestra established himself as one of the most reliable in his position in Italy last season, registering four assists and one goal in 37 league games.

The youngster was also recorded as the fastest player in Serie A in 2025-26, clocking an average sprint speed of 27.96km/h.

Tottenham Move for Palestra Unexpected

via Reuters

Tottenham do have some clear weaknesses in their squad as things stand, but right-back certainly isn’t one of them.

Pedro Porro has only just penned a new long-term deal to remain at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and he is a player who looks set to excel under De Zerbi’s leadership.

The Spaniard also has strong competition for the right side too in Djed Spence, who is currently away with England at the 206 World Cup.

Spence is also able to play at left-back, where he will compete with Robertson and Destiny Udogie for minutes.

The presence of Porro and Spence would therefore make a move for the highly-rated Palestra strange, even if he is emerging as an exciting young player.

Palestra and Porro would be able to play further forward if required, but you’d imagine that De Zerbi will use the players he has to fill the right wing slot, or bring in a specialist player for the role.

England get their 2026 World Cup campaign up and running on Wednesday night, one of the last nations to take to the field for their first game in Mexico, Canada and the United States of America.

It has been a thrilling start to the biggest tournament in history and the Three Lions will look to make their mark after impressive performances on Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning by two of the favourites to win the tournament – France and Argentina.

Now, Thomas Tuchel will be looking on his side to follow suit as they aim to end 60 years of hurt by lifting the trophy for only the second time come July 19.

Four England stars were left at home

Tuchel has already made some bold calls in the build-up to the tournament, leaving some big-name players at home when naming his 26-man squad.

Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Harry Maguire and Trent Alexander-Arnold were all left to watch the tournament at home as the German head coach made some ruthless decisions. And it will be interesting to see what starting lineup he chooses for the Three Lions’ opener against Croatia on Wednesday night, with some key decisions to be made. The biggest talking points would appear to be in the three spots behind captain and striker Harry Kane.

Former England striker Michael Owen has suggested the decisions facing Tuchel are not as thought-provoking as people may think, because he should “play them all” in the three spots behind Kane to help England lift the trophy.

Speaking in his Daily Mail World Cup column, Owen said: “This may sound radical, but here is my plan for England to win the World Cup – change the three attacking players behind Harry Kane at half-time.

“We know conditions are going to be limiting and we have seen that already with the temperatures in North America and Mexico. Thomas Tuchel has also warned about matches being slow and potentially won by his ‘special teams’ from the bench late in the game. I agree with him – this World Cup will be won by attacking players who are fresh.

Owen think Tuchel’s selection dilemma is not an issue

“So why not quicken things up and play to our strengths? There is so much debate as to who should play on the left, who should play in the middle, who should play on the right. It is because we have brilliant options in all of those positions.

“My solution – play them all! If it is Anthony Gordon who starts on the left, tell him: ‘forget about conserving energy, you’ve got 45 minutes, give it everything you’ve got, empty the tank’. Then, at half-time, on comes Marcus Rashford. Make one player from two. This rotation also means they can go again a few days later.

“It can be the same at No 10. Be it Jude Bellingham or Morgan Rogers who starts, send them out with the same message – don’t pace yourself, run yourself into the ground and get us ahead.”