Former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor McGregor has said a lot following his UFC 264 loss to Dustin Poirier via doctor’s stoppage, after shattering his leg near the end of the first round which ended up with him getting taken out of T-Mobile Arena on a stretcher.
McGregor would go on to get the surgery done on his left tibia following the event at a local Las Vegas hospital and is now expected to make his return to the octagon sometime next year as he continues to recover from the injury.
One of the biggest things that McGregor has said since the devastating loss is that he went into the fight dealing with a pre-existing injury on his left leg and that it contributed to his leg-breaking in the octagon. He has also said that the UFC, and more specifically UFC president Dana White, knew about his health struggles before fight night.
But newly-released footage tells a slightly different story. In the UFC’s “The Thrill and the Agony” aftermath special following UFC 264, McGregor can clearly be heard telling White about his pre-existing injury just minutes after suffering the brutal leg break.
“I been dealing with it the whole camp,” McGregor told White in the octagon after UFC 264. “Didn’t think nothing was gonna happen though.”
McGregor is currently in the beginning stages of his long road to recovery,. with a widely anticipated return sometime in 2022. The UFC and White have already talked about a potential fourth bout between McGregor and Poirier once the Irishman has been medically cleared to return to competition.
In the meantime, Poirier will fight for the UFC lightweight title next against the newly-crowned champion Charles Oliveira at a later date. Poirier could realistically make a fourth McGregor fight his first title defense, but that could be a bit premature for McGregor to fully recover.
What are your thoughts on the recently released Conor McGregor octagon footage?