UFC president Dana White isn’t sure if Conor McGregor will ever fight again.
Since McGregor suffered an injury that forced him out of a scheduled UFC 303 main event bout against Michael Chandler, many in the mixed martial arts world have wondered if McGregor would ever return to the octagon.
You can count the UFC boss among them.
Despite knowing more about McGregor’s status than anyone other than “The Notorious” himself, White was unable to give an answer about his future during an appearance on The Jim Rome Show.
“Conor will be 36 in July,” White said. “He has a lot of money and I never believe guys like him, Jon Jones, who knows? Maybe he’ll fight again. Maybe he won’t do it. Conor McGregor – maybe he will fight again, maybe not.
“Jon Jones. Maybe he’ll fight again. Maybe it won’t. Conor McGregor. Maybe he’ll fight again. Maybe I won’t.” @danawhite about the possibility of two UFC icons never stepping into the octagon again. pic.twitter.com/aWaFnFtWcw
– Jim Rome (@jimrome) June 17, 2024
“You never know with some of the guys who get to that level. You never know when you’ll see them again.”
No details of McGregor’s injury have been revealed.
One of White’s fears, however, is that historically injuries start to pile up as you get older.
“The other thing about getting older, like racehorses, is that you get injured a lot more easily,” he added. “You get hurt a lot more easily, more injuries happen than when you were young, and you’re less willing to step in with an injury than when you were young, hungry, and broke.”
The pay-per-view fight was to be McGregor’s first appearance in the Octagon since July 10, 2021. The fight ended with McGregor suffering a horrific leg fracture after a kick from Dustin Poirier.
Meanwhile, Chandler has not fought since November 2022, when he suffered a submission loss to Poirier.
With McGregor vs. Chandler no longer on the card, light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira will defend his title against Jiri Prochazka on short notice in the new main event.
Pereira and Prochazka previously fought at UFC 295 on November 11, 2023, with Pereira earning a second-round TKO victory to claim the vacant light heavyweight title.
UFC 303 will take place on Saturday, June 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event is part of the promotion’s International Fight Week.