Conor McGregor received one of the most unexpected gifts possible ahead of his UFC return when former Navy SEAL Rob O’Neill presented him with a glove allegedly worn during the mission that killed Osama bin Laden.

The moment happened during a sit-down conversation between the two about Conor McGregor’s Mac Energy brand, during which O’Neill detailed the legendary 2011 raid before personally handing over the glove to the former UFC double champion. According to O’Neill, he wore the same glove during the operation in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

“I’m working with this, and my left hand’s up here,” O’Neill told ‘The Notorious’ while demonstrating how he was holding his rifle in that moment. “So when I saw Osama bin Laden, the closest thing to him was my left hand. So I put him down on the ground with my right hand.”

The former Navy SEAL then handed the glove over to the former UFC double champion as a personal gift.

“I wanted you to get this as a token of our friendship,” he said.

“These are the gloves that was used on the mission to take down Osama Bin Laden, wow,” a visibly stunned Conor McGregor replied.

This isn’t the first time the two have linked up publicly. Last year, McGregor launched his interview series “1 of 1” and chose O’Neill as one of his first guests, filming an episode at Dublin’s Black Forge Inn.

During their chat, the two talked about combat, pressure, mindset, and the historic mission that helped O’Neill become one of the world’s most well-known former Navy SEALs. However, it is worth noting that O’Neill’s version of personally firing the fatal bullets that killed bin Laden has long been debated in the special operations community.

While the media often credits him with killing the al-Qaeda leader, some former SEAL Team 6 soldiers, notably fellow operator Matt Bissonnette, have disputed parts of his version of events in his book No Easy Day. The United States government has also never officially confirmed which operator fired the fatal shots.

The meeting also comes at an interesting time for ‘The Notorious’ himself. Dana White confirmed just a few days ago that the Irish superstar will make his return to the Octagon against Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 329.

After years away from combat, Conor McGregor appears to be completely back in fight mode, and spending time around military figures like O’Neill appears to be motivating him in his comeback preparations. However, that very conversation also led the former double champion to talk about the potential ‘worst-case scenarios’ that may unfold in his return.

Conor McGregor reveals how horror injury changed his mental preparations

That mindset may actually explain why Conor McGregor sounds far calmer heading into UFC 329, despite returning from one of the most gruesome injuries in MMA history. After breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier in 2021, the former UFC double champion said that he no longer prepares for the best possible outcome.

Instead, he now mentally prepares for a total disaster inside the cage before each battle. During his conversation with the former Navy SEAL, ‘The Notorious’ highlighted how his entire fighting approach has changed with experience.

“Now as I have become a lot more experienced in the game, I actually work backward towards the perfect scenario,” he explained. “So, I have had a limb break inside the Octagon, and now I must have an answer to that.

I have the perfect scenario: you knock them out with the big backhand, the crowd roars. But then I have the worst-case scenario.

“The shoulder dislocates midway through the first round. What’s my mechanisms? The knee dislocates in the first round, what’s my movements, my reactions? Do I switch the stance or go to my back? I have a whole selection of responses to the worst-case scenarios. Not that I sit and dwell on them or overthink them, but I just have them.”

To be honest, it seems more like survival planning than usual combat training. Conor McGregor made it clear that the leg injury has irrevocably altered his perspective on how he views combat.

Ironically, he also suffered a significant ACL injury during his first bout versus Max Holloway in 2013, so the first chapter of their rivalry holds terrible memories for the Irishman heading into UFC 329. It would be interesting to see how his contingency plans work if the situation actually takes a turn for the worse on his massive homecoming.