Conor McGregor sheds light on his injury and is ‘confident’ he will fight again after UFC 303 is canceled

Conor McGregor’s canceled comeback fight ahead of UFC 303 left many fans pessimistic about his return to the octagon, but the promotion’s most popular fighter said he’s “confident I’ll be back ” in a message published on social networks on Saturday.

McGregor, 35, also confirmed in the post that he suffered the injury ahead of a planned press conference in Dublin earlier this month, an event which was canceled at the last minute.

“It is very difficult to be excluded from my planned return fight,” McGregor wrote. “I suffered an injury before the press conference that required more time to heal than I had available.”

It’s very difficult to be excluded from my planned return fight. I suffered an injury before the press conference that required more time to heal than I had. The decision to postpone the fight was not made lightly, but in consultation with my doctors, the UFC,… pic.twitter.com/ACNnbvr27p

– Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) June 15, 2024

The former two-division champion wrote that the decision “was not taken lightly,” which explains why news of a replacement fight took so long to break. On Thursday, UFC president Dana White announced that a light heavyweight title fight between Alex Pereira and Jiří Procházka would be the new main event.

The cancellation of the original main event came after weeks of speculation that the fight could fall through, and follows years of waiting for McGregor to return. The former two-division champion hasn’t fought since breaking his leg in the first round of a loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021.

McGregor’s original opponent, Michael Chandler, will not fight on the card. He wrote on social media Friday, “Welcome…back on hiatus” in a post that helped publicize Hiatus Tequila.

McGregor remains the UFC’s most popular star despite just one victory since 2016.

“My fans and my opponents deserve me to do my best for this fight and we will get there,” McGregor said on Saturday. “Thank you for the messages of support, I am in a good mood and confident to come back! »

Discussions about rescheduling McGregor and Chandler’s fight have revolved around dates in August or September, according to MMA Hour’s Ariel Helwani.

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