UFC boss Dana White has backtracked on suggestions Conor McGregor could still feature at UFC 200, saying the chances of him being involved are now very slim.
As documented by Andre Vergara of Fox Sports, White spoke on Wednesday to Colin Cowherd on The Herd, and when asked about the Notorious—who announced his retirement earlier this week on social media—being involved in the July showpiece, he said, “Yeah if he called me after this interview, we’d probably still do it.”
However, just hours later, he seemed to have changed his tune. “The window is pretty much closed,” he told UFC Tonight, per Vergara.
McGregor’s decision to retire from the sport came as a bolt from the blue, as the Irishman was scheduled to face Nate Diaz in the main event of UFC 200—anticipated to be the biggest show in the company’s history.
The Irishman suffered a shock loss to Diaz at UFC 196 in his welterweight debut and was seeking to avenge the defeat with another 170-pound tussle. McGregor’s post was expected to be a hoax at first, although as stories began to surface, it became clear there is definite veracity to the claims made.
As reported by MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani, it seems as though the UFC are intent on pressing on in their build-up to event without McGregor:
White has also revealed McGregor cannot simply decide he’s retired and then make an immediate return to the sport either, citing procedures in line with USADA’s anti-doping process while on UFC Tonight.
“If [McGregor] is truly retired, he would have to take four months off before, it would take you four months to come back, because of USADA,” he told the program, per Dave Doyle of MMA Fighting. “You can’t just say, now that you have random drug testing, after however long you’re out, just say ‘okay, now I’m back’.“
It’s a fascinating situation, but one White and the UFC could definitely do without. With the press tour for UFC 200 beginning on Friday, the company has no main event for what was expected to be the marquee night of MMA in 2016.
Diaz is without an opponent at this juncture, while the tussle between Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar, set to be a fascinating clash, is not high-profile enough to headline the event. The same applies for Miesha Tate’s defence of her bantamweight title against Amanda Nunes.
MMA Journalist Alan Murphy summed up how the UFC must be feeling having had their plans plunged into crisis:
Many expect McGregor to end up taking to the Octagon in July eventually, although White’s U-turn over such a short space of time will cast aspersions on that view. While UFC 200 is still a few months away, the boss will be keen to get preparations rolling in earnest and reading between the lines, his patience looks as though it may have run out.
It’s unclear quite why McGregor has taken this decision. He’s a competitor who, despite his bravado and obvious love of material things, has always relished a challenge and was keen to give the fans what they wanted. Sadly, many followers of the sport will be left very disappointed should he follow through with this retirement in earnest.
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