Conor McGregor. Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Conor McGregor vents about how the UFC has handled his return fight

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 3/18/24

It’s been two years and eight months since Conor McGregor (22-6) last fought inside a UFC Octagon.

It was expected that the 35-year-old Irishman would have returned to action by now after agreeing to fight Michael Chandler (23-8) at the conclusion of their season coaching “The Ultimate Fighter” last August.

However, locking in a return date has been an elusive task for McGregor, who expressed during a recent interview with TalkSport that he’s growing increasingly frustrated with the UFC and its lack of communication about his return fight.

“That would be great for me — June 29 and then the Sphere,” McGregor said of which events he’s eyeing. “And then what? What happens then? I don’t know. And I wonder do they know? There’s been no talk about anything. So I wonder what next.”

Conor McGregor is "ready to rock" whenever the UFC gives him a return date

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The grudge match between McGregor and Chandler was originally targeted as the headliner of the UFC 296 pay-per-view back on Dec. 16, but plans for the bout fell through in August. Chandler called McGregor out in a WWE-style promo during a Feb. 19 edition of “Monday Night Raw,” but nothing has come of the proposed bout since.

Chandler isn’t the only fighter who would love to get their hands on McGregor.

Dustin Poirier (30-8), McGregor’s last opponent before breaking his leg in July 2021, is coming off a Fight of the Night knockout victory over Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299 just nine days ago, and McGregor noted he’s open to the quadrilogy fight with him.

McGregor also lobbied for a trilogy fight with Nate Diaz (21-13), who he beat via majority decision at UFC 202 in August 2016 but lost to via rear-naked choke five months earlier. That idea was all but squashed by UFC president Dana White.

“Obviously, I’ve got the Diaz trilogy,” McGregor said. “That’s what I had said [should take place at] the sphere. There was cold water put on that publicly off the bat, and I wasn’t happy with that. I need discussion or conversation, because if I lose interest and I’m not getting anything back, I just drift off. So I hope I can get something in and get dialed in.”

White told “The Pat McAfee Show” in early February that he hoped McGregor would return to the UFC in the fall.

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