London (AFP)

"Sport bores me a little. Nothing excites me": Irish mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor, 31, announced his retirement again on Sunday, having already ended his sports career in 2016 and then 2019.

"Hey guys, I decided to withdraw from the fight. Thank you all for the incredible memories! What an adventure!", McGregor first tweeted, accompanying his message with a photo with his mother.

McGregor, when interviewed later today on the American ESPN channel, said that he was bored:

"The sport bores me a little. I am not excited (by the fact of fighting). I do not know if it is because of the absence of public. I do not know what it is. But I don't find a craze, "he said.

"All this waiting, nothing is happening. I am looking for opponents but at the moment there is not much. Nothing excites me," added the Irishman.

- Third announcement -

It is therefore the third time that the figurehead of the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), the main organizer of MMA fights, announces its withdrawal from the octagon.

McGregor had decided to withdraw from MMA for the first time in April 2016, before reversing his decision after negotiating a new, significantly upgraded contract.

Nicknamed "The Notorious", had hung up a second time in March 2019 after being defeated in October 2018 against Russian Khabib Nurmagomedov, for the UFC lightweight title, in a fight that had ended by a general fight.

After his victory, the Russian fought with relatives of the Irishman, himself attacked by a member of the entourage of Nurmagomedov. The two MMA stars were suspended after the fact.

In October 2019, McGregor announced that he wanted to take over MMA and had returned to the octagon in January in Las Vegas by winning in just 40 seconds against American Donald Cerrone.

The Irishman, one of the most popular fighters in MMA history, was the first to become a double UFC champion in 2016.

- Controversy and wealth -

McGregor thus held the UFC featherweight title from 2015 to 2016 and lightweights from 2016 to 2018. But it was while participating in a controversial boxing match against American legend Floyd Mayweather in August 2017 in Las Vegas, that he has gained worldwide notoriety and wealth.

The Irishman also had trouble starting from justice several times. He was notably involved in two attacks in the United States. He is also the subject of two sexual assault investigations in Ireland, according to the New York Times.

At the end of March, he announced that he would donate one million euros to buy protective equipment for healthcare workers in his country in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The boss of the UFC, the American Dana White, reacted Sunday to the announcement of McGregor, saying that if the Irishman felt that he had to retire, he should "absolutely" do it.

"When you see the star he has become, he has spread (MMA) all over the world, to people and places who have never seen it before or who are not interested in it", he said at a press conference after a UFC competition in Las Vegas.

According to him, McGregor "loves fighting, he's passionate about it and has an incredible fighter IQ".

"Whatever the reasons, when a guy like him says he wants to stop, don't ask yourself questions," he added.

It remains to be seen whether the third time will be the right one, or if it is a new marketing move.

© 2020 AFP