CONOR MCGREGOR has announced plans to make his eagerly-anticipated return to the UFC “early”; next year.
The Dustin Poirierlast July.
An end-of-year return was seemingly on the cards for The Notorious, although discomfort kicking – as well as his role in the upcoming Road House remake – put paid to those plans.
He said on Instagram Live: “I’m going to be back soon, hopefully.
“Early 2023 I’m aiming for. Sometime in that first quarter.”;
McGregor, 34, is currently in the Dominican Republic filming his scenes for the Hollywood film – which also stars Jake Gyllenhaal.
And he plans to jump straight back into training after he finishes his filming obligations.
He continued: “That will give me a good couple of months [to prepare].
“Once I wrap this up in a couple of days, get the camp going [for] a good couple of months. And get going.”;
Former two-division champion McGregor won’t be back until April at the earliest as he’s currently out of the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing pool and has yet to be tested this year.
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USADA requires UFC fighters to be enrolled in their year-round testing programme in order to compete in the octagon.
UFC president Dana Whiterevealed future Hall-of-Famer McGregor was out of the testing pool last week.
When asked if Mystic Mac would have to be in the testing pool for six months before returning, he: “Yeah [he’ll have to be in it for six months.]”;
Fighters who have left the pool due to retirement or other reasons are required to be in it for a minimum of six months before competing again.
USADA and the UFC, however, do have the power to waive the six-month testing pool requirement in “exceptional circumstances or where the strict application of that rule would be manifestly unfair to the athlete.”;
McGregor, however, would have to pass two drug tests before being granted an exemption.
The UFC waived a then four-month testing pool requirement in 2016 in order for Brock Lesnar to return to the octagon at UFC 200.
But the decision backfired as the WWE superstar failed his post-fight drug test, which discovered traces of anti-estrogen drugs Clomiphene and Letrozole in his system.
McGregor will bid to snap a two-fight skid to Poirier when he eventually returns to the octagon.
He said: “I’m feeling crazy confident. Calm. Disattached from emotion.
“Aware of what I must do and making it happen. Visualizing. I see it all. Clear.
“This movie wraps, I’m back. I’ll have multiple fights completed by the time this movie even releases.”;
