UFC has ‘nothing planned’ for Conor McGregor despite return to Usada pool

UFC president Dana White also clarified McGregor’s recent comments about a return to the drug-test pool

UFC president Dana White has said the promotion has ‘nothing planned’ for Conor McGregor, while it waits for him to officially re-enter the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) testing pool.

McGregor has not fought since July 2021, when he suffered a broken leg in a second straight loss to Dustin Poirier, and the Irishman’s planned 2023 return has been foiled by his absence from the Usada pool.

McGregor, 35, said last week that he had “submitted” his “stuff” to Jeff Novitzky, the UFC’s Senior Vice-President of Athlete Health and Performance. That led fans to assume that the former dual-weight champion had re-entered the Usada pool, but White clarified McGregor’s comment while speaking on Saturday night (7 October).

“No, he is not officially in the Usada testing pool,” said White, 54. “He submitted the paperwork, probably by Monday he’ll be submitted. Again, don’t hold me to that, but the paperwork is submitted, next week sometime [he should be back in the pool].”

White was also asked whether McGregor could headline UFC 300, which is rumoured for April, against Michael Chandler, who was announced as the Irishman’s comeback opponent as early as February this year.

“I literally have nothing planned for Conor McGregor right now,” White said. “The paperwork is being submitted. We’ll play it by ear, see how things work out. There’s still a lot of things that have to happen as far as fights go, and then we’ll decide where he’s going to land.”

McGregor has not won since beating Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds in January 2020. Meanwhile, American Chandler is 2-3 in the UFC since joining the promotion in January 2021.

The 37-year-old last fought in November 2022, losing to Poirier via submission.

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