‘Underwhelming’: Pros react to Conor McGregor’s UFC return fight announcement

Conor McGregor has a date for his UFC return.

Finally.

The former two-division champion announced Sunday that his long-awaited matchup against Michael Chandler is slated for June 29 as part of the UFC’s annual International Fight Week pay-per-view. A cackling McGregor stated in his social media announcement that he wants Chandler to fight at 185 pounds — a demand Chandler quickly agreed to.

McGregor, 35, has been tentatively linked to a UFC return bout against Chandler since coaching against the American on The Ultimate Fighter 31 in early 2023. In total, “The Notorious” has fought in MMA just four times since capturing the UFC lightweight title with a 2016 win over Eddie Alvarez, sandwiching a victory over Donald Cerrone between a title loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov and back-to-back knockout losses to Dustin Poirier. McGregor sustained a brutal loss at the hands of Poirier in his most recent bout back in July 2021, suffering a broken leg en route to a first-round TKO injury stoppage.

Check out how some of McGregor’s fellow pros reacted to Sunday’s news below.