Conor McGregor has landed in Las Vegas and is soaking up the scenery at the T-Mobile Arena, where he’ll fight Max Holloway for UFC 329 on July 11th. According to “The Notorious,” he’s happy to be back and doesn’t plan on slowing down now that he’s competing again.
“Oh man, I love this arena,” McGregor told ESPN. “I love fight night, fight week. And God willing, I’m back here next week and the week after, how many weeks is in a year? 54? Here you go, I could fight every week if it’s a go, you know?
Before the injury, I had maybe three within the year. People don’t recall that. And, yeah, there you go. We plan on getting busy here.”
The only problem? His promotion, the UFC, seems more interested in slowing his roll than letting him fight out the last two fights on his current contract. McGregor previously revealed that the promotion had floated April 2027 as a date for his next fight. That clearly annoyed Mac, who has been trying to get a ‘season of fighting’ in since before COVID.
“I wish for it,” he said of a quick return. “So if I’m the man in the arena, right? I’m the one that’s making the walk. So if I’m the one who’s pushing further and campaigning for it, I’m sure that [will be] the case. Now I’ve said my piece with the Ultimate Fighting Championship and their staging of my bouts, and they’ve said their piece. And it’s kind of fallen on, ‘Let it happen on Saturday night, and let’s talk.’ And I’m fine with that. I’m absolutely fine with that.”
“As you know, two fights left on the contract. It’s still as is. This one will be, then one. So I hope to keep going, and I’m optimistic that will be the case.”
Some have accused the UFC of freezing McGregor out and slow-rolling his return. McGregor himself has complained about the difficulty in getting a fight out of the promotion, although he hasn’t made things easy by withdrawing from drug testing programs, getting suspended for whereabouts violations, and a nonsensical campaign to become the prime minister of Ireland.
It’s clear, though, that McGregor is currently locked in and devoted to the fight game. We’ll have to see how long that remains the case, but UFC should strike while the iron is hot.
