Conor McGregor is ready to unleash a "lethal weapon" when he makes his long-awaited return to the octagon next year.
The former two-weight world champion has been out of action since July of last year when he broke his leg during an ill-fated trilogy bout with rival Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, but has returned to training in anticipation of a comeback. And in sparring footage shared by McGregor recently, he appears to look in good shape for a return to action.
McGregor took to social media last night for an impromptu question-and-answer session with fans, where he declared that his injury was a "distant memory," and praised his "Masterful surgeons and team". He also declared that his once snapped leg "is now a lethal weapon".
The Irishman has also promised to return at welterweight, as he told Mirror Fighting earlier this year, and plans to show off his new skills in dominant showings. Asked by a fan what excites him most about fighting at 170lb, McGregor wrote: "I’m excited to put on clinics. They’ve seen half a page of my dossier."
McGregor made history in 2016 when he became the first fighter in UFC history to become a simultaneous two-division world champion when he won gold at lightweight less than a year after taking the featherweight title. And he would become the first fighter ever to win belts at three weight divisions if he could get himself back to the gold at welterweight.
However, his last few years have not been kind inside the cage, with his record following that win over Eddie Alvarez standing at just 1-3, all of which were stoppages. He was also beaten by Floyd Mayweather in a 2017 boxing match, although he impressed with his performance given it was his professional debut against an all-time great of the sport.
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He has been hit by injuries and outside of the cage issues during that time, and last year was the first where he had more than one fight within a twelve month period. However, it ended in a gruesome snapped leg that has seen him struggle to return to full fitness.
During his Twitter session with fans he also named Nate Diaz as his toughest opponent, over others who have beaten him like Khabib Nurmagomedov, Poirier and Joseph Duffy. The pair had a famous series of fights in 2016 in between his efforts at featherweight and lightweight gold where McGregor moved up to welterweight for the first time.
He was submitted in the second round of their first meeting after making the hasty move up two weight classes on short notice when his initial opponent at lightweight pulled out. However, he returned in the summer for a rematch and won that bout by majority decision after a gruelling five rounds that has had fans clamouring for a trilogy ever since.
