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Andreas Hale, ESPN
Conor McGregor has already started mapping out his return to the UFC in 2025.
After being forced out of his June matchup with Michael Chandler because of an injured toe, the former two-division champion has been chomping at the bit for his opportunity to return to the Octagon for the first time in nearly four years.
With Chandler booked for a rematch with Charles Oliveira at UFC 309 in November, McGregor has started to weigh his options.
“We’re looking for the date,” McGregor said in an interview with The Schmo. “I’d like to square it away with Michael Chandler. You know, I’d like to get Chandler in. We’ve had our beef. It’s not settled. He has a match scheduled. I would like to fight before he’s recovered. There’s a few names in the line at the minute. There’s a few names being discussed.”
Chandler recently told ESPN that a fight with McGregor is still in the plans for 2025. However, McGregor doesn’t plan to wait on Chandler’s availability before returning to the Octagon. Instead, the Irishman has unfinished business with two rivals that he would like to have settled for his return: Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier.
“Both of them. Both,” McGregor said. “It’s a must, for sure. The Dustin one is not settled, it’s 1-1-1. And the Diaz one is also 1-1. Two big blockbuster matches and I’m excited to get them locked in.”
McGregor’s last appearance in the UFC was in a trilogy fight with Poirier in 2021. He broke his leg at the end of the first round and hasn’t been back in action since. His storied rivalry with Diaz is also a consideration. Diaz famously submitted McGregor in the second round of their 2016 fight, in which McGregor was a significant betting favorite. The two had an immediate rematch later that year and McGregor won a narrow majority decision.
Poirier is currently weighing his options for what could potentially be his final fight following his submission loss to lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in June. Diaz left the UFC in 2022 to pursue boxing matches with Jake Paul and Jorge Masvidal. It has been rumored that both the UFC and Diaz are interested in bringing the Stockton, California, fighter back to the UFC.