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UFC boss Dana White has claimed that Conor McGregor could return to MMA “next summer” following his extended break from the sport. The former UFC Featherweight and Lightweight Champion has not fought since breaking his leg against Dustin Poirier but could now seek a return to The Octagon.
McGregor’s last fight against Poirier came back in UFC 264 in 2021. The bout was a rematch of the pair’s fight just six months prior which saw the American win via a second-round TKO.
The rematch also ended in the same fate but saw the Irishman only last until near the end of the first round when it was discovered McGregor had broken his tibia, rendering him unable to continue.
Over two years on McGregor could be back fighting in the not-so-distant future, according to White. The UFC chief spoke in an interview with the Daily Mail where he provided an update on the Irish fighter’s current condition.
“He’s good, he’s ready,” White told journalist Adam Glyn. “He wants to [fight]. He’s got to sit out for the six months to get back into the drug-testing pool. So realistically we could be looking at him next summer.”
White’s comments come with McGregor set to fight MMA star Michael Chandler following the pair’s appearance in the latest series of The Ultimate Fighter. The show sees both athletes take on the roles of coaches before facing each other in the ring, however, McGregor has remained coy about fighting his American opponent.
The 35-year-old has since posted videos of himself back in training and recently took to X to show off his sparring skills in the gym.
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McGregor has insisted that he is ready to compete once again and believes he will be ready in April. Speaking during Francis Ngannou’s heavyweight fight against Tyson Fury via TNT Sports, he remarked: “I’m in a great place, my body’s fully healed. Hopefully April, they’re saying April. So I’m happy.
“I would have loved [to have returned in] December, I would have dialled in here earlier. But I want to be honest, not just with myself but to my fans and what not. April’s a lovely run up for me, I’d be happy with that.
“I’m in a good spot. I’ve been training, I’ve been living also but I’ve been training. Hopefully I can get the run off, get that consistency going. I deserve it. It’s almost three years now that I’ve been kept from my way of living. So I’m eager to get back.”
Despite his claims, current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev believes he hasn’t seen enough of McGregor to see him back in The Octagon.
“If he deserves it, then yes. If he deserves it, he will come back, will win three or four fights,” he told Match TV. “In general, if the UFC leadership offers, I will not miss the fight definitely because I don’t think he deserves it.
“I don’t even think he deserves it because I don’t believe that he will come back to the winning streak or be able to beat the real contenders and become the number one contender.”
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