Conor McGregor “coming soon” to UFC with Dana White teasing most-awaited return

Conor McGregor has not fought in almost three years after he broke his leg at UFC 264 in the fight against Dustin Poirier. The subsequent surgery, rehabilitation, and his debut in the Hollywood movie Road House have been the reason for his absence.

However, Dana White, the UFC CEO, recently teased McGregor’s return with a cryptic Instagram story. Very active on social media, it did not take long for the ‘Notorious’ Irishman to respond in kind in his signature style.

Conor McGregor teases UFC return following Dana White’s cryptic post

Dana White recently teased the return of Conor McGregor with an Instagram story captioned, ‘Coming Soon’, in which was a video of McGregor walking in his signature style. McGregor, possibly in response, has fueled the rumors of his return with another social media post.

On X, McGregor uploaded a video of him with the flag of his native Republic of Ireland with the same caption as Dana White’s Instagram story, ‘Coming Soon’, per Marca. Cody Durden, a UFC flyweight, recently leaked that at UFC 303, McGregor will headline against Michael Chandler.

Long before, on New Year’s Eve of 2024, McGregor had posted on social media of his return time. In the post, McGregor announced that he would be fighting ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler in a middleweight bout on June 29, the date for International Fight Week PPV.

However, Dana White later confirmed that they are looking for a later date for the Irishman as he has promotional obligations for his debut movie, The Road House. With the cinema released weeks before to huge success, McGregor is itching for a return.

In addition to fighting Chandler, McGregor has also expressed interest in having a trilogy fight with Nate Diaz at the promotion’s debut at the Las Vegas Sphere at UFC 306. Diaz has also expressed interest but he is not with the UFC as of now.

Michael Chandler to be Conor McGregor’s comeback opponent?

After his unfortunate injury at UFC 264, McGregor’s next involvement with the promotion came as a coach opposite Michael Chandler on The Ultimate Fighter Season 31. After the conclusion of the reality series, the expectations were that the two coaches would fight inside the octagon.

Dana White and the UFC brass have stated that Chandler is in all likelihood the next opponent for McGregor. However, no official confirmation has been made by the UFC. Nonetheless, Chandler has not fought since he appeared as the coach opposite McGregor, with his last fight being against Dustin Poirier at UFC 281.

Interestingly, both McGregor and Chandler have not fought since they were defeated by Poirier, the former interim lightweight champion and two-time undisputed lightweight title challenger.

Chandler has been a focal point of criticism for waiting so long to get a fight booked against McGregor. The former three-time Bellator lightweight champion even made a The Rock-esque callout when he was a guest on Monday Night Raw.

Nevertheless, in all likelihood, Conor McGregor’s next fight is against Michael Chandler. Even though a middleweight bout was proposed by the Irishman, welterweight is the more realistic choice.

Nonetheless, McGregor is the biggest superstar in the sport and therefore will get what he wants. With knockout victories in three different weight classes, he would be the first to have it in four different weight classes if he finishes Chandler in their potential fight.

Do you think Conor McGregor will be headlining UFC 303 against Michael Chandler? Leave your thoughts about it below!