Dana White Blames Conor McGregor For His UFC Absence – ‘These Are Questions For Conor, Not Me’
Dana White has outlined why Conor McGregor has not returned to the UFC.
McGregor has not fought since his loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021. He suffered a broken leg, which required extensive recovery. Following his USADA enrolment, shortly before their departure, McGregor was expected to return in 2024. He returned on New Year’s Day and said he would face Michael Chandler at 185 pounds on June 29.
White ruled that out, saying the UFC would announce his return. White did outline that he expected White to make a return by fall. But this is dependent on two conditions: one that McGregor has a full camp and the other that he cannot be reached due to the fact it was a career-threatening injury.
White On McGregor
“First of all, he’s coming back from one of the nastiest injuries you can come back from. How long was Anderson Silva out when he did it? How long was Chris Weidman out? The guys who break that bone…so that’s an issue right there, number one. Number two, is Conor McGregor doesn’t need the f***ing money. So when you don’t need the money…Khabib doesn’t need the money, Khabib retired…
“Only Conor knows that. These are questions for Conor McGregor, not me. I know he’s training, but I don’t know what level of training he’s doing, I don’t know what level of kicking he’s doing right now. [And] I don’t know any of that stuff. I need to know the guy’s in a full camp, he’s ready to go. Conor McGregor has a movie coming out, he’s got businesses that he’s built. It’s a completely different dynamic when you’re dealing with a guy that has this kind of money,’ White said
McGregor is 35, meaning it is vital that he remain active. The Notorious has to decide whether he continues to fight for the love of the sport or for legacy. He has lost his last three fights out of four UFC fights, meaning a world title shot is way off.
Although he is a cash cow in the sport, he cannot live off his past accomplishments, which made him the first two-weight UFC world champion. McGregor has also been linked with a lucrative boxing fight. Manny Pacquiao was mentioned for a big fight in Saudi Arabia. This would only happen if the UFC endorsed it or McGregor became a free agent. And there is a desire to see it happen.
McGregor’s Future
“Turki [Alalshikh] loves big events, and he’s putting on the biggest and the best. Not just in the field of boxing. He’s putting on soccer; he’s putting on snooker. So, it’s a very intriguing fight at this point. Manny, at his age, and Conor has improved so much since the [Floyd Mayweather fight [in 2017, which McGregor lost by a 10th round knockout].
“I think it’s like the Tyson Fury-Ngannou and Ngannou and Joshua. “It just brings two of the biggest names together. Two of the biggest names in combat sports in one of the biggest names in boxing, and that’s a really intriguing and fun fight,” Sean Gibbons (Pacquiao’s manager of his promotional) stated
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