McGregor Responds To PED Reports

Conor McGregor has addressed the PED reports head-on — and his answer raises as many questions as it settles.

Speaking ahead of his UFC 329 return against Max Holloway on July 11, McGregor responded to reports that his surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache wrote a letter supporting a therapeutic use exemption application on his behalf during his recovery from the broken leg suffered against Dustin Poirier in 2021. The application, according to the reports, was never granted. McGregor provided the overriding context for any treatment he received.

"Shocking. A man's private medical records. The most devastating injury you'll see in combat sports. You have an injury like that, you're not going to walk again. The objective should be to get that athlete, who has given his livelihood for the entertainment of the people, back on his feet," McGregor

His account of what he actually took and why is where things become complicated. McGregor said he removed himself from the testing pool, followed his doctors' instructions, and deliberately chose not to ask what he was being given.

"Whatever, I took myself out of the pool, listened to my doctors, and didn't ask questions. I don't need to know, and I don't want to know. All I want to know is what's going to get me back on my feet and able to play with my children in a normal capacity again. That was it," McGregor

The broken leg McGregor suffered at UFC 264 in July 2021 was genuinely severe. The tibula snapped visibly in the first round against Poirier, and the recovery timeline stretched across years rather than months. The argument that serious medical intervention was required is not a difficult one to make, and legitimate TUE applications exist precisely to accommodate athletes recovering from significant injuries.

McGregor returns to the Octagon on July 11 for the first time since the injury, five years of inactivity and several false starts later. The PED story arrives in the final weeks of his preparation, adding a layer to a comeback that was already carrying more scrutiny than most. Whether it affects the promotion of UFC 329 or the reception he receives in Las Vegas depends on how much oxygen the story continues to receive.