Dana White: No McGregor Fight Date Yet
Dana White has shut down suggestions that Conor McGregor will fight this year, saying there is no date yet.
McGregor withdrew from his UFC 303 clash against Michael Chandler, which was set for June 29. The Irishman suffered a broken toe, extending his inactivity further. The Notorious has not fought since his UFC 264 defeat to Dustin Poirier in 2021. That was his third loss out of his previous four UFC fights, as he suffered a broken leg. McGregor expects to return from his toe injury by September, suggesting he could fight at UFC 306 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.
The Irishmen then said he had spoken to White, who confirmed there would be a fight this year. This is vital as Chandler has been waiting for the fight. The talk of the fight began when he and McGregor squared off as rivals on the TUF 31 series. Chandler has remained inactive since his 2022 loss to Poirier at UFC 281. The rationale has been that waiting for McGregor gets him a bigger payday.
White Reacts
Meanwhile, he can avoid suffering a loss, which may hamper the demand for the McGregor fight. Chandler has been offered a title shot against Islam Makhachev. That allows him to pursue a UFC Lightweight Title clash. Given the uncertainty surrounding McGregor-Chandler, White’s following comments do not make it any better.
“Yeah, that’s the fight that needs to happen. We’ve been waiting for it, and it’s an awesome fight. A fun fight. As of sitting here right here, right now, no I don’t have a date for it, a plan, or anything like that. But obviously, me, the fans, and ESPN would love for it to happen in 2024. But, we’ll see what happens.”
White also addressed the recent assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump.
Trump was addressing his supporters at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. That is when gunshots were fired. Trump put his hand near his ear before ducking down with the help of the Secret Service. Trump would then get up and put his fist in the air.
White On Trump
The former President was then taken in a car away from the scene. The shooter, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was killed, while one person in the crowd also died. White and Trump have a very close relationship. Trump helped out the UFC early in its inception with venues in New Jersey. Meanwhile, Trump has also attended numerous UFC events, the latest of which was UFC 302. White reacted to the news and detailed his phone conversation with Trump over the incident.
“[Trump] was never going to UFC Denver, I was on a plane to Italy. He wouldn’t go to the UFC unless I was there, number one. Number two, I’ve been saying this forever about this guy. He is one of the toughest, most resilient human beings that I have ever met in my life…everybody wants to act like a tough guy, right? Everybody wants to act like a tough guy. When the…[stuff] goes down, you find out who tough guys are and are not.
“This guy is the legitimate, ultimate American badass of all time. The guy takes a shot at him, he goes down, stands up, and starts chanting to the crowd ‘Fight, fight, fight!’. I literally was blown away. I called him as soon as I landed, and he answered, he was already home from the hospital and talked for like 30 minutes. I’ve never known a human being like this in my life,” White stated
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