Conor McGregor has insisted he will fight Michael Chandler in December despite the UFC star being yet to re-enter the USADA testing pool.
McGregor has been pencilled-in to face Chandler at UFC 296 on December 16 in Las Vegas, but this date has been questioned because of McGregor's current drug-testing status. All UFC fighters are required to complete six months of drug testing before they are eligible to fight, meaning that McGregor would be unable to fight before the end of the year unless he is granted an exemption.
The former two-weight world champion reassured fans that his comeback fight will not be delayed until 2024 in a now-deleted tweet. Replying to a fan who questioned him about a fight date, McGregor simply replied "December" before also tweeting an emoji of Santa Claus.
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McGregor's tweet spree didn't end there as he tweeted a picture of himself pushing Chandler during their heated altercation on The Ultimate Fighter. “It’s official! Chandler is an idiot sandwich," McGregor wrote before giving an official prediction for the fight by saying: "I’m going to take him to the third and torture him." Chandler has since responded to McGregor's belittling tweets by mocking the size of his "baby hands" in comparison to his newfound muscle gain.
UFC boss Dana White said the promotion will deal with McGregor's drug testing status once his fight against Chandler is officially announced. USADA can grant exemptions to fighters that allows them to fast track the usual six month mandatory window, but the organisation has insisted that McGregor's would not qualify for any special treatment.
"He's not [in the pool]," White told TSN of McGregor's USADA status. "We’ll see how that plays out… I don’t talk about s*** until s*** happens. To sit here and think hypothetically how a million different things could happen, no idea. UFC 300 isn’t even on my mind right now. The Conor thing, who the hell knows how that’s gonna play out? Who cares what USADA says? We’ll see what happens when it happens. So, I don’t know," he told TSN.
White and UFC commentator Jon Anik have both already discussed the possibility of McGregor's comeback fight taking place in the first quarter of 2024. If McGregor's return is delayed until January, four years would have passed since his last UFC win. The Irishman hasn't fought since a horror leg break against Dustin Poirier in July 2021 whilst Chandler hasn't been in action since being tapped out by Poirier last November.
