CONOR McGREGOR is facing exiting the UFC rankings… but Dana White said he “definitely wants to come back next year.”
The Irishman is currently rated No13 in the lightweight division, just two places inside the top 15.
It comes following over a year of inactivity amid the horror leg injury he suffered in his last fight.
But McGregor – who was also busy filming his Hollywood debut – is back training again and primed for a huge comeback in 2023.
UFC president White said: “He’s been posting videos of himself training and he’s just done filming a movie.
“He definitely wants to come back next year.”
McGregor, 34, has been sidelined since breaking his leg in the first round of his trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier, 33, in July 2021.
The former two-weight UFC champion underwent surgery and a successful rehab over the last year.
But a return to the octagon was ruled out after undertaking his first Hollywood role.
McGregor is starring in a reboot of Patrick Swayze’s 1989 classic Roadhouse, alongside Jake Gyllenhaal.
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But it has paved the way for superstar to make a massive return to the cage next year, following a callout from Michael Chandler, 36.
Chandler said: “I think at this point he’ll come back and look at the suitors.
“I don’t think I’m the easiest fight that he could take, but I am the biggest fight that he could take.
“I think Conor McGregor stepping back in the octagon does big numbers no matter what.
“But Conor McGregor stepping inside the octagon with me does staggering numbers.
“I respect him, I would love to see him come back and maybe I’ll be the guy that he comes back and fights.”
