Conor McGregor 'announces retirement' from MMA on Twitter

The Irishman, who has become the sport’s most recognisable male fighter, tweeted:

“I have decided to retire young. Thanks for the cheese. Catch ya's later.”

McGregor is the current UFC Featherweight champion, but lost his first UFC bout to Nate Diaz on March 5.

He is due to face Diaz in a rematch on 9 July, but in a further unexpected twist, Diaz also announced his resignation just hours later.

The announcement was greeted with some scepticism online, with observers claiming McGregor was joking, or looking for attention.

However, McGregor's announcement comes just a week after the 27-year-old was ringside at a Total Extreme Fighting event in which fellow-MMA fighter, Joao Carvalho, sustained fatal injuries from a technical knockout by Charlie "The Hospital" Ward - a team-mate of McGregor.

McGregor posted on his Facebook page after Carvalho's death: "To see a young man doing what he loves, competing for a chance at a better life, and then to have it taken away is truly heartbreaking."