UFC CEO Dana White further delays Conor McGregor’s octagon return, shares new timeline

It appears as though fans will have to wait a while longer to see Conor McGregor return to the octagon as Dana White recently provided an update on his status.

The highly anticipated bout between McGregor and Michael Chandler appeared to have been nearing after they served as opposing coaches on 'The Ultimate Fighter', but the bout was never made official. The former two-division UFC champion had made an announcement on his Instagram account on New Year's Eve claiming that he would be fighting 'Iron' in a middleweight bout during International Fight Week.

Despite the announcement and rumors that followed, White said the opposite when he was asked during his press availability. The UFC CEO recently told Pat McAfee that he remains hopeful that McGregor vs. Chandler will take place this year but indicated that it could be much later in the year. He said:

"Eventually, yeah, hopefully this year.. There is no date. I'm hoping for the fall. We get it done in the fall."

McGregor and Chandler have gone back and forth on social media, so whether White is purposely misleading fans to ensure the announcement is a surprise remains to be seen.

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Dana White meets with Rizin president Nobuyuki Sakakibara

Dana White set social media in a frenzy as he recently met with Rizin president Nobuyuki Sakakibara.

Last month, the Rizin president expressed interest in meeting with White to discuss Kyoji Horiguchi and Kai Asakura possibly joining the UFC. Horiguchi is the reigning flyweight champion, while Asakura is the reigning bantamweight champion, and are both among the most popular MMA fighters in Japan.

It's unclear as to what else they discussed, as the UFC hasn't been in favor of cross-promotions like what Rizin has done in the past with Bellator. It will be interesting to see to the extent that Horiguchi and Asakura were discussed and whether White would work out an agreement to bring them over to the promotion.

Tweet regarding White's meeting with Sakakibara [Image courtesy: @Chisanga_Maleta - X]