Paul Heyman doesn't think Conor McGregor will live to age 57
After Conor McGregor and Paul Heyman get into a social media spat, Heyman has some choice words about the former UFC champion during an interview
Of course you'd have to have known that Conor McGregor was going to chime in on the merger between WWE and Endeavor, the parent company of the UFC.
Over the weekend, during which WWE held WrestleMania 39, it was reported that the wrestling promotion would be merging with Endeavor to form a new $21 billion global sports and entertainment company (name yet to be revealed).
Upon the announcement of the news, McGregor sent his congratulations to UFC brass on Twitter before posting a Photoshopped picture of himself with a UFC title on one shoulder and the WWE championship on the other.
This led to Heyman, on social media, responding by calling McGregor a "Roman Reigns wannabe." McGregor, in turn, threatened to break Heyman's jaw in three places.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani that took place after WrestleMania and the merger report, Heyman sounded off on the former two-division UFC champ.
Paul Heyman implies Conor McGregor is all bark and no bite, questions if he'll be relevant (or alive) in about 20 years' time
"I'm not a grandfather, but I appreciate the fact that I'm old enough to be, and that I'm still thriving on top," Heyman said. "I would like to see if Conor McGregor at 57 is still thriving at the very top of his entire industry. We'll see if he's even relevant at 50 - we'll see if he even lives to 57 with his lifestyle.
"It's not that he tweeted to me. I picked the fight with him. Let's be honest about this. He, as a Roman Reigns wannabe, did the Paul Heyman-style title on each shoulder and gave a shoutout to himself. Of course, he did. You know, the ultimate self-promoter in Conor McGregor. You know, standing nine feet tall and weighing 155 pounds at 5'4".
The WWE-UFC merger has sparked questions surrounding if McGregor or any other UFC stars will do crossovers with WWE. The WWE roster currently includes former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar (who had a run in the WWE before his journey into MMA) and former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.
The past couple of years have also seen Daniel Cormier serve as a special referee at WWE Extreme Rules in October and members of American Top Team take part in AEW.
The new company, which has reserved TKO on the New York Stock Exchange ticker, will see Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel also serve as CEO here, while Vince McMahon serves as Executive Chairman. McMahon had been chairman and CEO of WWE for the longest time before retiring in July 2022 as a result of several hush-money allegations. McMahon, who was still the majority shareholder prior to this merger, essentially forced his way back into power in the WWE over the first few months of 2023.
Dana White will remain UFC president, and Nick Khan, who had been WWE CEO following McMahon stepping down, will serve as president of WWE. Both properties are expected to operate separately despite being under the same ownership umbrella.
Reigns, the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion whom Heyman serves as special counsel for, defeated Cody Rhodes to retain his championships in the main event of night two for WrestleMania 39.
"My father, who was a pretty street-savvy guy from the Bronx, he used to say, 'If you’re going to hit somebody, you don’t go and walk up to them and go, 'I'm gonna kick your a**, I'm gonna punch ya in the face, I'm gonna beat you up, I'm gonna come get you.' They walk up and they hit you," Heyman said. "He's talking a good game, but he ain't coming after 'The Wiseman.'"