Michael Bisping doesn’t know if we’ll ever see Conor McGregor back inside the Octagon.
After nearly three years on the shelf, the Irish megastar was set to make his long-awaited return on June 29 at UFC 303. Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. On Thursday, Dana White announced that McGregor is officially out of the International Fight Week finale.
Instead, fight fans will be treated to a rematch between reigning light heavyweight world champion Alex Pereira and ex-titleholder Jiri Prochazka.
UFC 303 International Fight Week June 29th pic.twitter.com/P47PSsKcg0
— danawhite (@danawhite) June 14, 2024
Speaking of McGregor’s sudden exit from the event, ‘The Count’ offered his reaction, revealing that he truly believed we would see the Irishman back in action. Now, he’s not so sure if it’ll ever happen.
“I don’t know why I was kind of optimistic that this fight was still going to go ahead,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “I should have know, though. I was on a movie set last week and I was working with ‘Big’ John McCarthy. A man that is an absolute authority on mixed marital arts and he told me in no uncertain terms, ‘This fight is not happening. He’s injured. He’s hurt himself. His leg, the leg that he broke, that snapped against Dustin Poirier. His titanium skin bone has failed.’ That’s what ‘Big’ John said. I thought he was wrong. I thought he was mistaken.”
Bisping Doesn’t See Conor McGregor Ever Being the ‘Same Fighter’ Again
The news of Conor McGregor’s withdrawal was accompanied by a confirmation that he bowed out of the bout due to an injury. Unfortunately, no other information regarding the injury was offered by Dana White or McGregor himself, causing widespread speculation over the severity.
“The big question is, is that it? Will McGregor ever fight again,” Bisping added. “He hurt himself this time. What’s to say he won’t hurt himself next time? What’s to say that he’ll ever be the same fighter again? Him competing against Dustin Poirier, when the leg snapped, might just be the last time that Conor McGregor ever steps foot inside an Octagon.
“Fighters aren’t the same. Anderson Silva came back from a leg break. He wasn’t the same. Chris Weidman, he wasn’t the same. Chris Weidman still has problems now. So, it might be the last time.”
