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UFC president Dana White has insisted that Conor McGregor will fight in 2025, after the former champion’s return faced another setback this week.
It was announced in February 2023 that McGregor would fight Michael Chandler next, though no date was confirmed for the bout – until this April. After UFC 300, White said McGregor would face Chandler in June.
However, McGregor suffered a broken toe, delaying the fight indefinitely. Then, on Saturday (14 September), Chandler announced he would take on Charles Oliveira in November. That bout is a rematch of Oliveira’s 2021 win against the American, which came via TKO.
McGregor expressed his frustration at the situation, but White is adamant that the Irishman will fight in 2025.
“Yes,” he said. “I wasn’t 100 per cent in 2024, but I am in 2025. I just am.
“I know more than you guys know. I’m 100 per cent confident McGregor will fight next year.”
McGregor, 36, last fought in 2021, sustaining a broken leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier. Six months earlier, McGregor lost to Poirier via knockout.
Chandler, 38, has also been inactive while waiting for McGregor; the American last fought in November 2022, losing to Poirier via submission.
Explaining his frustration at this week’s developments, McGregor said: “I’ve been tested more than twice than these other [UFC] athletes, yet I struggle to get a date.”
McGregor said he had even asked Turki Al-Sheikh, the Saudi adviser behind the Gulf state’s boxing endeavours, for help.
Saudi Arabia recently began staging and funding MMA events, including UFC 306 in Las Vegas last Saturday.
