Despite a verbal fight agreement and having filmed an entire season as opposing coaches of “The Ultimate Fighter,” Grant Dawson is convinced that Conor McGregor won’t fight Michael Chandler.
“I’m telling you right now that the Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor fight is not going to happen,” Dawson told MMA Junkie. “That is not happening. I would be shocked if that fight happens this year or at all.”
The rising UFC lightweight contender is skeptical about a return for McGregor given his stance with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
“Man, he’s not in the testing pool,” Dawson explained. “He has to be in the testing pool for six months.”
McGregor took himself out of the USADA testing pool as he recovered from a broken leg sustained in his trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier in the summer of 2021. Although he’s expected to fight later in 2023 against Chandler, the Irish star has yet to get back in the testing pool, a status he needs to uphold for six months before competing in the UFC.
The UFC has issued exemptions in the past. Most notably, they waived the six-month period for Brock Lesnar, who returned to defeat Mark Hunt at UFC 200 in 2016. That win would later get overturned to a no contest after Lesnar tested positive for clomiphene.
Dawson doesn’t think McGregor will get the Lesnar treatment.
“That’s a little bit different,” Dawson said. “USADA was a lot newer. A lot of people have their eyes on it right now. A lot of people are going to be saying, ‘Hey, he needs to be in the testing pool.’ That’s the whole talk.
“He’s not going to be in the testing pool. He thought he could go the Brock Lesnar way, and he’s realizing he can’t. He was at bareknuckle (BKFC 41 event). Did you see him at bareknuckle pulling that stunt? That was a stunt. He’s trying to get past the rules, and it’s not going to happen. USADA is not going to budge on their decision. It’s going to be six months, and that fight is not happening this year. I don’t think that fight is ever happening because Conor doesn’t want to be in the testing pool, if you know what I mean.”
McGregor hasn’t tested positive for any banned substances or admitted to using them. However, there’s been cryptic comments from his part on the situation, and there’s been a lot of speculation on the potential use of steroids given the muscle mass he’s put on in the past year.
Dawson understands the interest in use of banned substances that could potentially help heal an injury such as McGregor’s.
“I don’t know what the answer is,” Dawson said. “I don’t know what the answer is, but I think that if fighters are having fertility issues, if fighters have serious injuries where they’re going to be out for years anyway, I think there should be exceptions.
“I don’t know how you regulate that. I don’t know what the science is behind that, and I’m sure they’ll find ways to use that to cheat, 100 percent. … Again, I don’t know what the answer is to make it fair for everybody, but I do think there are situations where medical intervention is OK.”
