Conor McGregor blasts Cerrone in 40 seconds in UFC return

Cor McGregor stopped Donald Cerrone with a he kick and punches 40 seconds into first round at UFC 246 on Saturday night, anuncing his return to mixed martial arts with his first victory since 2016.

Irish former two-division champion returned from a three-year stretch of inactivity and outside--c troubles with a performance that echoed his greatest fights during his unparalleled rise.

McGregor (22-4) floored Cerrone (36-14) only 20 seconds into bout with a perfectly placed kick, and he mercilessly finished on ground to delight of a sellout crowd at T-Mobile Arena.

McGregor’s hand hn’t been raised in victory since vember 2016, when he stopped lightweight Eddie Alvarez to become first fighter in UFC history to hold two championship belts simultaneously. With his fame and fortune multiplying, McGregor fought only his boxing match with Floyd Maywear in 2017, and he lost a one-sided UFC bout to lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in late 2018.

After a year of inactivity and trouble outside c, McGregor vowed to return to elite form in this bout against a fellow UFC veteran and stopp specialist. His dramatic victory over Cerrone indicated he's on his way.

Cerrone is winningest fighter in UFC history with 23 victories inside octagon, a mark that reflects both his durability and commitment to an uncommonly busy schedule. Cerrone, who also holds UFC record with 16 stopp wins, h fought a whopping 11 times since McGregor's win over Alvarez, and he was in c for 15th time since he lost his only UFC title shot in December 2015.

But Cerrone’s last two fights were stopped when he took too much dam, and he couldn't block McGregor's decisive kick or recover from punishment on ground.

McGregor believes he can recapture fearsome form he showed during his meteoric rise to unprecedented MMA success. He won 15 consecutive fights during a five-year run from low-profile shows in Dublin to world’s biggest MMA events, stopping five straight elite UFC opponents with punches on way up.