Conor McGregor has been warned he will likely have to be drug-tested for six months before he can return to action.
McGregor has not fought since he broke his leg in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier last summer. He had planned to fight this year but has struggled to recover completely from the injury.
He has also removed himself from the USADA drug-testing pool which has thrown his return date into doubt. Fighters are required to be in the pool for six months before they can resume their careers, but McGregor insists he will be given an exemption to allow him to test just twice before making a comeback.
"I am clear for testing in February," he said last week. "I will complete my two tests per USADA and we are booking a fight." But a spokesman for USADA insisted McGregor is unlikely to be granted such an exemption. "McGregor is not enrolled in our testing pool and would have to be for six months unless an exception is granted, which we do not think would be applicable," USADA director of communications Averi Walker told ESPN.
That would leave McGregor struggling to secure a fight until August at the earliest, meaning he will have been out of the cage for over two years. The former two-weight world champion could face a very different landscape in the lightweight and welterweight divisions.
Islam Makhachev will defend his 155lb title in February when he takes on featherweight ruler Alex Volkanovski while 170lb champion Leon Edwards will defend his belt in a rematch against Kamaru Usman which is likely to take place in the UK in March.
McGregor has also been involved in a furious row with light-heavyweight fighter Anthony Smith who suggested the Dubliner had been using steroids to aid his recovery. McGregor took to social media this weekend to issue a furious denial.
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McGregor wrote: "This rat spoke to [Chris] Weidman who’d the same horrific injury and is having severe complications still, is bothered that I was able to heal/return to a normal way of life. He, like many other rats in my game, would be happier if I wasn’t able to play with my children the same again.
"The audacity of this loser! @lionheartsmith you’re a loser. The % of the bones joining back after a break like this is so low. You think I give a f**** about anything else. I am the most tested fighter all time in combat sport. I give everything to this game. You - Nothing!
"I thought you broke your leg yourself in your last fight lol you little dope. You embarrassment of a man! Keep my name out of your f****** mouth. P****."
