UFC president Dana White claims Conor McGregor is itching to return to the Octagon.
McGregor was last seen in action back in January. The “Notorious” one took on Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in the main event of UFC 246. McGregor was looking to rebound from his Oct. 2018 submission loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov. McGregor starched Cerrone via TKO in 40 seconds.
Conor McGregor Ready To Return, Says Dana White
White appeared on The Jim Rome Show ahead of UFC 249, which takes place this Saturday night (May 9). During the interview, the UFC boss revealed that McGregor has been ready to go but he isn’t sure if he wants to book him for “Fight Island” (via MMAFighting.com).
“Conor’s been ready to fight for a while,” White revealed when speaking to Jim Rome on Tuesday. “He’s in shape. He’s ready to go.
“First of all, ‘Fight Island’ is going to be very important in any of these fights that are happening with people from outside the country. It kills me to do a fight with Conor without fans. Kills me. This guy’s doing almost $20 million gates.”
The coronavirus pandemic has impacted many things in the UFC. One of those things is the lightweight title picture. UFC 249 was supposed to be headlined by a 155-pound title bout between champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson. Those plans went awry due to a travel ban in Russia. As a result, Ferguson will now meet Justin Gaethje for the interim UFC lightweight title.
How McGregor factors into the title situation upon his return remains to be seen. White has said numerous times that Khabib vs. McGregor II would be the most lucrative fight in UFC history. With the winner of Ferguson vs. Gaethje due for an undisputed title bout with Nurmagomedov, it puts the rematch on hold.
