McGregor’s Return Delayed; Jake Paul Says ‘McGregor Is Hostage, Free Conor’
Conor McGregor’s future is still in limbo, as Dana White confirmed the Irishman is not likely to fight until late 2025.
White’s comments were made in the aftermath of Jon Jones‘ win over Stipe Miocic as he successfully defended his UFC Heavyweight Title. McGregor was expected to face Michael Chandler at UFC 303 on June 29. But the Irishman could not make that fight, as he suffered a broken toe. Chandler subsequently went on to face Charles Oliveira at UFC 309. Oliveira came out with a win, raising serious question marks over whether McGregor will now fight Chandler. The fight is not as big as it could have been ever since their days as rivals on the TUF 31 series.
McGregor’s Future
McGregor recently said he would fight Dan Hooker on February 1 in Saudi Arabia. Hooker confirmed that there were talks going on between them. And yet, the UFC has not made an official announcement, meaning that the fight is unlikely to happen. This is primarily due to the fact that McGregor is currently undergoing a civil lawsuit for sexual assault. The Irishman has a trial and has testified, meaning that the turnaround time for a fight early next year is very short. There are also issues over who McGregor would face.
The Chandler fight is now unlikely to happen. Meanwhile, the Hooker fight has not drawn a lot of enthusiasm. The Irishman could take on Oliveira, who bounced back from his split decision loss against Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 300. McGregor has two fights left on his UFC deal. He has indicated his desire to fight in BKFC, where he is a part owner. That means the Irishman is looking to secure the biggest fights. However, he has not had a UFC fight since 2021, when he lost to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
That was his third defeat out of his last four UFC fights, suggesting that he is not in a position to demand the big bouts. However, McGregor is still the big star attraction, as shown by the build-up for the Chandler fight. The press conference sold out in just nine minutes. Meanwhile, the live gate was expected to set a new UFC record at that time of over $20 million. Regardless, McGregor needs to stay in shape outside of the octagon. In the meantime, White expects him to fight later in the year.
McGregor’s Return
“Conor’s gonna come back in late ’25. So, there’s a lot of time before we can figure out who’s gonna fight Conor,” White said
Nevertheless, not everyone has been receptive to White’s words. Jake Paul weighed in on the situation after White criticized his performance against Mike Tyson. The fight promised much, given the build-up around it. It was reportedly broadcast to 280 million subscribers. However, the fight failed to deliver much action. Tyson was not at his best, as the 58-year-old was no longer the same fighter. He was also wearing a compression sleeve, which helped him deal with a knee injury. Paul even admitted he took it a bit easy on Tyson. Now, Jake has hit back, stating that White is not a great promoter. He also bashed him for not allowing McGregor to fight.
“Dana White has a been boxing promoter his whole career. All these nut riders need to do their research. His TV show failed. Couldn’t sell 4K tickets in Dublin with that useless Irish boxer [Callum Walsh] he’s promoting. “And he is not fighters first. He’s Dana first. Builds you up and tears you down. Now Conor McGregor is hostage. Free Conor,” Paul said
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