Kavanagh: McGregor will be back in the UFC this year
During a Facebook live interview to promote Wimp 2 Warrior, Kavanagh says McGregor will return to UFC in 2018.
There’s so much happening in the division and things changing around and what have you. I can’t say who [he’ll fight]. I can’t say when [he’ll be back]. As people who follow him on social media will see, he’s back, very motivated, training a lot. He’s in the gym every day. The plan seems to be forming and getting more exact every day that [he’ll be] back in the UFC this year. When and against who, I would be just guessing.
Ferguson: McGregor turned down fight
Speaking on The MMA Hour, Ferguson says McGregor turned down a fight with him before he was offered his upcoming UFC 223 showdown with Khabib Nurmagomedov.
As far as what they told me in the contract, that’s what they were telling me. They were saying, ‘Look, you’re fighting for the undisputed title.’ That was after they told me I was going to fight Conor McGregor and then just a whole bunch of s*** went down and I was like, you know what, I just got to deal with this. What happened was they offered me a fight with a fighter who didn’t want to fight…I don’t know if it was a contract issue or what it was, the dude doesn’t seem interested to defend his belt against the number one and defending interim lightweight champion. Now I’m the champion because he didn’t want to defend it. Defend or vacate so my campaign actually worked.
Nurmagomedov says he might deny McGregor a title shot
Nurmagomedov says if he wins against Ferguson at UFC 223, he may deny McGregor a shot at the lightweight title upon his long-awaited return to MMA. He says he is more interested in his legacy than his bank balance.
I’m gonna make humble Conor. I’m gonna beat Tony and I’m gonna say to Conor, ‘Hey, you have to go into the [contender] line,’ because you have to deserve this. He has only one fight at 155 [pounds]. I am 25-0 at 155. Undefeated. Undisputed…I’m going to take this belt, and we’ll see what happens…Fighters try to make money with Conor but I’m not in this sport to make money. I can make money with other stuff in Russia, like a lot of money. I come here to make history, for my legacy.
White confident McGregor will return to UFC in 2018
White says he is confident that a lot of his top box office stars, including McGregor, will gear up for long-awaited returns to the Octagon this coming year, as well as Jones, Lesnar, St-Pierre and the Diaz brothers.
I’m going to take the odds and say ‘yes’, that Conor will fight more than twice inside the Octagon, at odds of +175 that he will.
McGregor attends training in Tierney Celtic top
McGregor posts photos of himself training in Dublin, wearing a Celtic shirt with Tierney’s name, number and autograph on the back. Another photo is captioned:
Working on the “Blitz” tonight at @sbgireland. An underrated technique until it goes through you at 100mile an hour. Shout out Celtic football club.
GOAT🍀 @TheNotoriousMMA pic.twitter.com/ZGThutIjzX
— Kieran Tierney (@kierantierney1) January 19, 2018
UFC may strip McGregor’s lightweight title
White warns McGregor he faces being stripped of his UFC lightweight title if he remains out of the octagon until September.
Conor has said he’s thinking about coming back in September. If he comes back in September that’s almost two years, that can’t happen, it’s not fair to everybody else…I love Conor, I respect Conor, I love everything he’s done for this company, but the belt would have to move on.
White says McGregor’s continued absence is unfair to his division rivals and added talks are under way for interim champion Tony Ferguson to take on undefeated Russian Khabib Nurmagomedov in a bout for the lightweight title.
You do Khabib versus Tony. We’re working on that fight now. If and when Conor comes back, he will get the first crack at the title.
"Conor has said he's thinking about coming back in September. If he comes back in September, that's almost two years…that can't happen." — @danawhite
Dana speaks on #UFCSTL, Khabib, Tony and of course…Conor McGregor possibly being stripped. https://t.co/fTlT8sD2I3
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) January 15, 2018
McGregor reignites Mayweather feud by calling him a “rat”
Following Mayweather’s posts of a series of pictures from their fight on Instagram earlier in the week, McGregor posts a picture of himself getting ready for a session in the gym, on Instagram, with the caption:
Back at the gym floyds a rat [sic]
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bd3AVjqgsO3/
McGregor ends year sick with Australian flu virus
McGregor reveals he ended the year sick in bed for two days after being struck down with the Australian flu virus. He was forced to cancel a New Year’s Eve party after contracting the illness, but took to social media to share a snap of himself in bed with Conor Junior.
Well that was a wild New Year’s Eve. Half the family hit with the Australian flu virus and some even left in hospital with it. I’ve never even been to Australia wtf!…Big New Year’s Eve party cancelled at the last minute and I am left shaking in bed the past two days. I’ll leave that with the rest of the bad behind me in 2017 and take with me the many great experiences I’ve had this year! None greater than the birth of my son Conor Jr and the continued support of my family, my friends and my dedicated staff through thick and thin.
McGregor: I’ll quit fighting before I suffer any brain damage
McGregor insists he won’t take “stupid” risks and will quit fighting before he suffers any potential brain damage, as he looks to return to the UFC.
I always look at the end from a damage-taken standpoint. How much damage have I taken? How is my brain? How is my mental health? How is my physical body? How is my training? How is my preparation? How is my hunger for it? That is where I gauge how long I will do it and there is still a lot left in me.
McGregor admits he no longer fights for the financial gain, but for the love of the sport.
It is not necessarily a money thing for me. I am passionate about fighting. Fighting is what I love to do. I will continue to do it as long as I am healthy and willing to put in the work that it takes to do. I will not be stupid though. I will not notice things about myself and then continue to do it like many others before me…It is a dangerous, ruthless business and I am aware of that. Thankfully I am in a position of great wealth. I do not need to do it. I am doing it for the love of it. I will make my decision when the time comes.
Rutten: McGregor must defend or vacate title
Rutten says McGregor must defend his title:
First of all, (he needs to fight) the interim champion. He needs to defend his title, it’s got to start there. I think Max Holloway is a fight that he needs to fight as well, if he still wants to fight it. Nate Diaz will be a great fight, but I think he’s holding the division hostage. He needs to defend his title. Otherwise, he’s going to have to step away from it.
Ferguson wants title unification fight vs. McGregor in early 2018
Ferguson says he wants a title unification bout against McGregor in the first quarter of 2018.
So I Asked Doc If He Could Make My Elbows Any More Sharper ?? Well… w/ A Wink & A Nod It Was Done!!! T’Was A Very Minor Surgery & Now Getting Ready To Unify My Belt W/ McNuggets @thenotoriousmma In The 1st 1/4 Of The Year (March – April) As Recovery Is Going Great!!! #DefendorVacate MF’er???…I Look Forward To Kicking McNuggets Ass & Defending My Strap For A Decade Or Two
https://www.instagram.com/p/BcdyHgljiFr/
McGregor, Pacquiao open talks for April 2018 fight
Pacquiao says he has opened talks with Conor McGregor for a big-money fight in April next year.
If we can negotiate it, I have no problem. It is OK with both of us. [Talks?] Initially, but we have not yet had any follow-up conversations.
Ora defends McGregor ‘date night’ comment
Ora defends her comment on an Instagram post, where she says she was having ‘date night’ with McGregor. McGregor has been in a relationship with Dee Devlin for eight years, and they have a son together. Ora’s spokesperson:
Date night is a figure of speech, Rita also posted selfies with Donatella Versace as her real date and one with Jourdan Dunn as her date.
Holloway: If McGregor rematch doesn’t happen, it’s on him
In an interview with Helwani, Holloway says if a rematch against McGregor fails to materialize, the he blame should not be pinned on him.
When a bully pulls your hair, you punch him in the face. You know, it’s funny. The guy’s funny, I couldn’t help but laugh. I’m on his mind apparently…I’m trying to think of our division and respect all the other fighters…It took me 10 fights to get the damn interim title shot and then 11 to get an undisputed shot. It’s my duty to make sure everything runs smoothly. I gotta respect our sport, my division and the guys that are fighting in it. That’s what I gotta do. At the end of the day, this guy is gonna keep yapping…
Tell [McGregor] I’ll be waiting. If that fight doesn’t happen it’s not on our side, it’s on his. Right now, I’m focused on champ life. When the exhibition fights come up and I have choices to make I can start calling out boxing guys and tell them, ‘come over to MMA, big shot.’ We’ll see what happens, but it’s just funny, you know? It’s funny. I’m quite surprised because every time they talk about this guy’s UFC career, one name doesn’t come up and that’s Max Holloway. It’s me. For him to bring me up is actually funny. It’s surprising, it’s hilarious and we’ll see what happens. He’s still retired in my eyes. When he comes back and wants to fight a real MMA fighter let me know.
Mayweather: De La Hoya ‘on coke’, claims he ‘carried’ McGregor
In comments about De La Hoya wanting to fight McGregor, Mayweather claims he carried the Irish fighter for the sake of the fans:
When Oscar de la Hoya, the same one that was talking about me fighting Conor McGregor, he was trying to protest and stop the fight! Now he’s trying to fight Conor McGregor. Is he a hypocrite or is he back on coke again? That man, that boy still snorting the lines. Still snorting the lines! Everybody try to protest the Mayweather McGregor fight. But I’m gonna tell you all the truth. You know I carried McGregor? You know I made it look good for y’all?
!!!! RT @_WSBG: TALK NICE RT @EditinKing: Floyd Mayweather savages Oscar De La Hoya for calling out Conor McGregor https://t.co/IXFv9gY6CO
— Young Durag Strings (@WeavusChrist) December 4, 2017
McGregor, Holloway engage on Twitter
McGregor tweets his response to Holloway wanting to fight him.
I miss those sunglasses. pic.twitter.com/0fa7U9dM4Y
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) December 3, 2017
Holloway responds:
Miss the sunglasses? I bet you also miss 2015 brother. Retired fighters love the past. pic.twitter.com/UWGnJG2KEe
— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) December 3, 2017
Holloway: I’d gladly fight McGregor
At the post-fight press conference after his win over Jose Aldo, Holloway targets McGregor:
I’m the champion of my division and I got to keep everything rolling. I got to keep everything going. I got to [get] thrown in the deep end. I’m not going to go on a hiatus. As long as I get contenders, I’m going to fight. If [the] UFC call me up for that reason, any reason to fight him [McGregor], I’d gladly fight him. If the Conor fight don’t happen, it’s not on my side, I’ll tell you guys right now. It’s on their team. Their team talks about me all the time. They tell me about how I’m the best guy in the world and blah-blah-blah and this and that, but now, really think about this. Right now Conor’s talking about fighting Paulie Malignaggi in MMA. Let that sink in. Paulie Malignaggi in MMA, I don’t know what to say.
White: McGregor ‘may never fight in the Octagon again’
At the UFC’s Las Vegas headquarters, White says McGregor may not fight again:
Conor might never fight again. The guy’s got $100 million. I’ve got guys that made less than that and were lawyers and went to school their whole life and quit working. Try to get up and get punched in the face every day when you’ve got $100 million in the bank. Money changes everything with a lot of people.
As for a potential fight with Tony Ferguson:
Listen, we ain’t taking any direction from Ferguson. With [McGregor], it’s not about ‘defend or vacate’. We’re working on a new deal right now. We’ve got to work out this new deal.
Aldo: Strip McGregor if title if he doesn’t defend it
Aldo says the UFC should strip McGregor of his lightweight belt if he doe not defend it.
Thank God my division is moving. It would be bad if it was stuck, but my division is moving. It’s hard, right? Every athlete dreams of becoming champion, fighting for the title, and the guy is holding up the division. But it’s up to the UFC to make the decisions. The UFC needs to do what has to be done: you take the belt away or make him defend it. I think everyone is waiting for that…He has to defend it, has to put his belt on the line in order to become champion. He only won the title. For me, Ferguson has great possibilities of becoming champion in the future.
Referee: McGregor told to sit because he was acting as fourth cornerman
Goddard says he told McGregor to sit down in Gdansk because he was acting as a fourth cornerman.
The reason I interjected is because Artem gets a fourth cornerman cageside giving instruction. That’s not allowed. Imagine had Conor talked him through a fight-ending sequence. Then what? Conor was basically acting like a fourth cornerman. Walking around the cage side wherever and whenever he wanted…When Fili took down Artem, Conor was right there. That’s simply not fair and not allowed. I won’t have it. He can’t do as he pleases…If Conor had stood up, stayed at his seat, then he could have shouted till his heart’s content. That’s what he’s supposed to do. But what he simply cannot do, what he is not allowed to do, is approach the cage at any point and as I say act as the fourth cornerman…That’s unfair and unjust. Anyone who knows me will tell you I’ve done this forever, in any country in any situation. My integrity is not wavered and neither is the rules. We can’t allow that. I simply had to act.