In September, it was revealed that UFC superstar Conor McGregor hasn’t been tested by USADA since the third quarter of 2021. The agency later issued a (non) clarification on the matter, which only made the timeline of McGregor’s return more blurry than it already is.
McGregor’s lack of testing also drew doubts from his peers. Lightweight contender Justin Gaethje, for one, thinks the company superstar is on the juice.
“It sounds to me like he’s off taking steroids right now. He hasn’t been drug tested by USADA in quite some time. I’m looking for fair competition,” Gaethje recently said of the Irishman.
“If he’s on steroids, then give me steroids and let’s go, I’m down with that. My health is my biggest factor. I have never taken a performance-enhancing drug, and I do not want to fight people that are taking performance-enhancing drugs.”
But for UFC Hall-of-Famer Daniel Cormier, these are some “serious” allegations from Gaethje. However, he doesn’t think they are baseless.
“Justin went so far as to imply that Conor McGregor — or straight up say, honestly — that Conor McGregor’s off doing some steroids. That is a pretty bold statement,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel (quotes via MMA Fighting).
“The reality is this; you don’t know. Because Conor McGregor’s not a tall guy so if he starts to gain weight, he’s gonna look a little bigger, he’s gonna look a little more full, and he looks a little more puffy.
“For Gaethje to say that so confidently tells me that either him or his team is kind of looking into it. I’m pretty sure Gaethje has an idea of when McGregor was tested last.”
Cormier believes a fight between McGregor and Gaethje has now become more interesting, given the latter’s damaging leg kicks.
“Justin can throw those kicks from both sides, and he can really beat up that injured leg. So, is that the fight? The world would love it, but these accusations are very serious.
“So for Justin Gaethje to say them, there must be some background info into it.”
McGregor’s last Octagon appearance happened over a year ago at UFC 264 when he broke his leg in his trilogy against Dustin Poirier. He’s so far been hard at work preparing for his return, which is expected to happen sometime in 2023.
