Conor McGregor slams Dana White after UFC president's update on comeback fight

UFC star Conor McGregor has clashed with Dana White after the UFC President suggested McGregor is not likely to step back into the octagon this year.

Despite being hot on the heels of his competitor Michael Chandler for more than a year and a half, McGregor had to bail on their much-anticipated June bout due to a toe injury. The clash was supposed to be back on for December 14, yet White remains skeptical, stating he won't expect McGregor to return before 2025.

"We talked. We talked," said White about a recent interaction with McGregor . "We didn't meet up, but we talked, and yeah, he wants to fight. So, we'll figure it out. Not this year. He won't fight this year."

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However, McGregor didn't want to let that prediction slide without a retort , jumping onto social media to assert: "Ah Dana. December is the date! Bring the calendar year home with a winning event! Come on now, what's this? I am off to altitude next month to prepare. December. Tell Dana and UFC we want December! We deserve December."

On the flip side, Chandler appears ready to drop the long-winded dispute, acknowledging his respect for McGregor but also his desire to push forward with his career, regardless of whether the fight materializes. Speaking to Lucky Block, Chandler conveyed: "As much as I respect Conor, my legacy is not hinged upon this fight. I am running my own race, and I'm continuing to move forward," adding that he keeps his options open: "I am at the point now where we are looking at all of the options and not just fighting Conor. Things move fast, and the phone can ring at any time. I don't want to make it sound like I'm not focused on fighting Conor, but right now when no contract is signed," reports the Mirror .

"I'm excited to fight. I'm training every day, and I'm in the best shape that I have been in a very long time, and I'm ready to go out there whether it's Conor or someone else. There's always going to be life after Conor if this fight never comes to fruition. I've always felt that if the Conor fight didn't happen, I'm going to be just fine.

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"December's got me and Conor written all over it. That's when we should fight. It's enough time for him to have healed up and get back into a training camp. December makes a lot of sense. People love the violence that I bring to the Octagon and obviously Conor McGregor is the biggest name in combat sports, so this fight makes a ton of sense. It's a great matchup.

"There's a little bit of gamesmanship slash bad blood, but it's overall respectful, and if Conor and I do fight, I will dispatch him, and finally put an exclamation mark on this big saga that is Chandler versus Conor. But we are fighting in the UFC, the biggest combat sports organization in the world by far, and they have a ton of moving parts. I definitely want to fight by the end of the year, that would be ideal. That's always the hope. But, man, there's a lot of options out there."

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