Many UFC fans will have been waiting with bated breath for Conor McGregor to get back into the Octagon in 2024, but his planned UFC 303 clash with Michael Chandler was not to be, and now CEO Dana White is reticent about setting a new date for the Irishman’s return fight.
McGregor is, unsurprisingly, itching to get back into action and has already talked about his hopes of fighting ten times in 2025, but who and when he may go up against is still very much an unknown.
Whenever McGregor does fight, the level of interest in UFC skyrockets and the UFC betting sites experience a real high point when it comes to fans seeking to either back him in his bouts or wager against a humiliating defeat; such is the enthusiasm that surrounds the 36-year-old fighter.
White, seemingly learning from previous errors, is not pairing up McGregor for 2025 fights until he is sure that the prized competitor is ready for action. There is talk of his fight with Chandler still being likely, as well as speculation of a clash with Charles Oliviera, the two facing each other in UFC 309 in November.
On what lies ahead for McGregor, White explained,
“It’s going to [be] determined when Conor comes back, who the opponent is,”
“Whenever Conor is ready and he comes back.”
“He hit me up last night when he heard that I was here [in Dublin]. He’s in New York right now, and he is training.” White concluded.
By the time McGregor does get back into the octagon it may well be four years since his last fight, which is incredible to comprehend. Conor McGregor was very much on top of the world after beating Jose Aldo at UFC 194 in Las Vegas in December 2015. That led to him earning the UFC Featherweight Championship on a unified basis.
He then lost to Nate Diaz the following year before beating him five months later. He lost to Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018, losing his title in the process. A TKO against the Cowboy Donald Cerrone gave him a 22-4 record, and then back-to-back defeats to Dustin Poirier in 2021 put his career at a standstill.
There had been apparent plans for McGregor to fight boxer Terence Crawford in two fights in each discipline. The fights were the brainchild of Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s GEA (General Entertainment Authority), but while the UFC star was up for the idea, which would have netted both hundreds of millions, Crawford (undefeated with a 41-0 record), was not too keen.
“They offered me the fight,” said Crawford,
“Me and Conor got on the phone and started politicking to try and figure something out. Man, I’m not getting in no f—ing Octagon with you so you can be kicking and elbowing me!” He added.
McGregor has, of course, taken on boxers at their own game before, losing to legend Floyd Mayweather after a 10th-round TKO.