Former WWE star Ryback is urging compassion rather than mockery in response to the online reaction to Conor McGregor’s knee injury at UFC 329, drawing on his own history of career-altering setbacks to defend the former UFC champion.
The retired wrestler posted the message on Instagram, arguing that how people respond to another person’s adversity says more about them than about the person struggling.
Rather than pile on with the jokes and memes circulating after McGregor’s injury, Ryback framed the moment as one that called for empathy. He drew a direct line to what he has been through in his own career.
“As someone who’s fought through career-changing injuries, I have a lot of respect for anyone willing to put themselves back on the line after years of rebuilding. That takes courage,” Ryback wrote on Ryback (Instagram).
He continued by contrasting ridicule with encouragement, framing setbacks as temporary.
“The way we respond to someone else’s adversity says far more about us than it does about them. We can choose ridicule, or we can choose empathy,” he wrote.
Ryback closed the post with a nod to resilience and his longtime catchphrase.
“Life isn’t about avoiding setbacks. It’s about refusing to let them define us. There are no permanent losses if we’re willing to learn, adapt, and keep moving forward. One big win can erase years of setbacks. Wishing Conor a full recovery. Keep moving forward. Feed Me More!”
Why Ryback Relates To The Situation
The stance fits a theme Ryback has returned to often. He has spoken candidly for years about how injuries and behind-the-scenes decisions shaped his run, a subject he revisits regularly across his social platforms and livestreams.
Ryback’s primary in-ring tenure came in WWE from 2004 to 2016, and he has not competed for a major promotion in recent years. He detailed his own recovery road when he opened up about a possible pro wrestling return during his stem cell therapy journey, the kind of rebuilding process he referenced in defending McGregor.
These days, Ryback is most visible as a content creator and entrepreneur, running his Feed Me More Nutrition supplement brand and the Ryback TV YouTube channel while staying active on Instagram, TikTok, and X.