UFC boss Dana White commented Wednesday on the prospective boxing match between the former two-weight UFC champion Conor McGregor and WWE superstar Logan Paul.
The rumored exhibition appeared to originate on a troll account on X, however, McGregor amplified it by interacting with the post, and, before long, speculation suggested each fighter was going to be paid $250 million for participating in the Indian event which the mega-rich Ambani family were allegedly hosting.
While commenting on the clash, White also dropped McGregor’s probable UFC return date.
Dana White Shut Down Conor McGregor vs Logan Paul Bout
UFC boss also put forward possible return date for the former UFC ruler.
When speaking on the Pardon My Take podcast, which is part of the Barstool Sports network, White shut down the possibility of the fight ever taking place: “No [Conor McGregor won’t fight Logan].”
Responding to a question as to whether McGregor would fight KSI, instead, White also gave a hard: “No.”
Conor McGregor has not fought since 2021 when he suffered a second successive knockout loss to Dustin Poirier. The defeat saw his pro MMA record retreat to 22 wins against 6 losses, and, though he was scheduled to fight Michael Chandler on the 29th of June 2024, the Irishman withdrew from the contest with little more than a month to go, citing a broken pinky toe.
Back then, it seemed likely — particularly judging from McGregor’s side — that the fight could be re-booked for a later time, either with Chandler, or an alternative opponent, particularly as a broken pinky toe can be back to normal within a 4-6 week timeframe. However, McGregor remains on the sideline.
That is, perhaps, until later this year.
“Hopefully Conor returns [to the UFC] in the fall of this year.”
Dana White says Conor McGregor will NOT fight either of Logan Paul or KSI in a boxing bout.
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) January 15, 2025
Dana hopes Conor will return to the octagon in the fall timeframe
Via @PardonMyTake pic.twitter.com/4HFdF8UKVu
Per White, Conor McGregor will be returning to the UFC in Q3 2025.
For now, the UFC has only recently restarted its live events business with a UFC Fight Night event broadcast from its Apex studio in Las Vegas last Saturday, the 11th of January. This weekend, on Saturday, the 11th of January, the big show moves to the Intuit Dome in Inglewood for a championship doubleheader featuring Merab Dvalishvili defending his bantamweight title against Umar Nurmagomedov, before Islam Makhachev puts his UFC lightweight belt on the line in a rematch with Arman Tsarukyan.