There are a lot of questions about who Conor McGregor will fight next. “The Notorious” made his highly-anticipated return to Octagon action last month in the UFC 246 pay-per-view (PPV) main event, running through Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone in just 40 seconds at welterweight.
Now, rumors run rampant as to who the Irishman fights next. Names such as Jorge Masvidal, UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, and UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov have all been mentioned. However, when it comes to the welterweight names of Masvidal and Usman, those seem to have never been on the list of possibilities. UFC president Dana White recently spoke to MMA Junkie and noted that was all McGregor talking. (H/T BJPenn.com)
“There was never any talk about Usman or Masvidal. That was Conor. That’s madness. That’s crazy,” White said.
White again noted that McGregor is under the assumption that the UFC 249 pay-per-view (PPV) main event between Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson won’t happen. The matchup has been made four times before, each man pulling from the contest due to injury every time. “Notorious” is ready to step in on a moment’s notice as soon as either man pulls.
“Conor’s thing right now is Conor thinks Tony vs. Khabib is going to happen and he wants to slide into that spot. So we’ll see how that plays out,” White said. “He is ready, willing and able to slide into that spot if it becomes available.”
As for Usman and Masvidal, those two are being looked at to headline International Fight Week this summer. The pair engaged in a verbal altercation during Super Bowl media day last week and prompted White to announce his intentions. However, the fight has not been signed or agreed upon quite yet.
Of course, Masvidal has made it known he’d like to fight McGregor purely for the financial benefit. It will be interesting to see how things shake out in the next few months.
What do you think about White saying he never really considered McGregor vs. Masvidal or Usman?