Conor McGregor won't make his anticipated return to the Octagon for at least four more months, UFC president Dana White said on Tuesday.
McGregor (22-6), who has been sidelined for more than three years and was recently disqualified from driving, was to take on lightweight Michael Chandler at UFC 303 earlier this summer, but McGregor sustained a broken toe a few weeks before the date.
"We talked. We talked. We didn't meet up but we talked, and yeah, (McGregor) wants to fight. So we'll figure it out. (But) not this year. He won't fight this year," White said Tuesday.
McGregor had been adamant that he would re-enter the Octagon this year, and Chandler (23-8) expressed optimism that the two would meet at UFC 310 in Las Vegas in mid-December.
That possibility appeared unlikely when McGregor was seen on videos partying in different venues.
McGregor, who was the first UFC fighter to hold two titles simultaneously when he won the featherweight and lightweight crowns, sustained a broken leg during a loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 and has not fought since.
Dubliner McGregor responded in a post on X saying he wanted to fight at the end of the year.
"December is the date! Bring the calendar year home with a winning event!" McGregor wrote. "I am off to altitude next month to prepare. Tell Dana and UFC we want December! We deserve December!"
