17 days out from UFC 303 and there is a lot of speculation regarding Conor McGregor’s return to the octagon after 3 years. It all started when the press conference between Chandler and McGregor was canceled without any explanation. And now, McGregor’s recently deleted story has made things worse.
‘The Notorious’ has been eerily silent since the press conference was canceled. Michael Chandler on the other hand has appeared on a podcast and confirmed that the fight was still on. However, a recent story shared by Conor McGregor had fans speculating the worst.
‘The Notorious’ took to Instagram to share an old video of himself where he talks about resistance training and injuries.
“I think the more resistance you train with, the less movement and the more injury. But the less resistance you train with, the more movement and the less injury.”
‘The Mystic Mac’ also shared a few emojis that suggested something not being right with the McGregor camp. Needless to say, since the post was shared, people have been assuming that the Conor McGregor return is done with for now.
One fan said, “So much for the return.”
So much for the return pic.twitter.com/oPsUG8UQn4
— KOOSH ⚡ (@nftkoosh) June 13, 2024
Another fan had a different take on the matter saying, “lol he’s trolling and everyone is eating it up for clicks.”
lol he’s trolling and everyone is eating it up for clicks
— Jay♂️ (@JayMMA4) June 13, 2024
“ufc 303 has edged me since it was announced”– commented an upset fan.
ufc 303 has edged me since it was announced
— XTWIITTY (@XTWIITTY) June 13, 2024
“It’s so over”– commented another dejected fan.
It’s so over
— P (@DKD2421) June 13, 2024
While some fans continue to remain positive, updates provided by Ariel Helwani dim the light at the end of the tunnel even more.
Ariel Helwani provides an unwanted update on McGregor at UFC 303
Last week, despite all the rumors, Helwani stated that there was still a lot of positivity that the fight was going on as scheduled. However, one week on the veteran journalist’s outlook has changed completely.
In a recent episode of his show, Helwani confirmed that the positivity from last week was ‘nowhere to be found’.
” I would say that it’s hanging on and I would say the UFC is working very very hard right now to figure out a plan B. Now, the plan could be someone stepping in to fight Chandler, or the plan C could be a whole new fight.”
Ariel Helwani provides an update and timeline on the UFC 303 headliner, McGregor vs. Chandler.
“The positivity that I talked about exactly one week ago today is nowhere to be found. I would say this fight is very much in limbo. I would say that it’s hanging on and I would say… pic.twitter.com/zYf1sKJlST
— AFeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) June 12, 2024
All that said, However, at this point in time, Helwani is the only person reporting that the fight is off. Neither the UFC nor Chandler or McGregor have even hinted at anything along those lines.