Conor McGregor reacts as he's 'given date and opponent' for UFC return fight

Conor McGregor has reacted to a video of Ariel Helwani mapping out his UFC comeback as a date and a series of opponents has been revealed.

McGregor, 37, is edging closer to returning to the UFC but his comeback won't happen at the White House.

The MMA leaders revealed their six-fight White House card, with Dana White opting to leave out the Irishman, who had been keen on facing Michael Chandler.

But, according to Helwani, the UFC and McGregor himself are eyeing a summer showdown on the International Fight Week card on July 11 in Las Vegas.

Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, the veteran combat sports reporter outlined McGregor's route back to the UFC, revealing he had a meeting with the UFC bosses on Monday.

"I think one of Conor's greatest skills, if you will, was his timing. I think that the reason why he got the Floyd Mayweather fight in 2017 was because it was on the heels of the sale and they wanted to recoup some of that money. I think he's had impeccable timing, especially in the heyday of his career," he began.

"And I think he has impeccable timing right now because I think that they have seen the backlash of the White House card and the Jon Jones stuff. And who's sitting right there? Conor McGregor waiting ready to go for July 11 International Fight Week. And so I think that they are a little bit more motivated to deliver this.

"But this is the assumption that I'm going to make. The assumption that I'm going to make is I know when some of these things go haywire or awry, he goes on social media, he tweets a bunch of stuff, he gets upset, he deletes, he airs his grievances. I have not seen any of that since Monday. And I was looking for that because I knew when the meeting was and I was looking for something. I'm not going to be played around. I want my release. I want this that. He has not jumped on this train at all. And so that at least at least leads me to believe that it was positive and that they are moving in that direction."

Conor McGregor hasn't fought since UFC 264 in July 2021. Image: Getty

Who will Conor McGregor fight?

Helwani claims the UFC want McGregor back and they want him to fight in July.

And he has proposed two opponents, which happen to be a pair of former foes.

Helwani name-dropped Nate Diaz, who isn't signed with the UFC, before mentioning Max Holloway, who surrendered his BMF title to Charles Oliveira at UFC 326 last weekend.

"Obviously Nate is out there. They have to sign him. I think that the Max Holloway fight is still interesting," he added. "I think that there's more interest in the Holloway fight than the Oliveira fight at this point, but Oliveira has a belt. Does Conor want a belt? Does that matter to him?

"We know that they reached out about (Carlos) Prates. I reported he said yes. They've moved on from that. He wants to fight at 170. To your point earlier, I feel like Conor versus anyone would be welcomed with open arms by the the audience. And I know that there are some people who still think that he's not going to fight. But I feel like him not airing any grievances, unless I missed the tweet that was deleted, but I feel like people catch those all the time, is a positive sign of how that meeting went on Monday."

Conor McGregor reacts to Ariel Helwani

As Helwani mentioned, McGregor didn't go on a social media rant following Monday's meeting with the UFC.

But he has been active on X and even reacted to Helwani's comments by recalling his famous quote ahead of his title bout against Jose Aldo at UFC 194.

On X, he wrote: "Precision beats power, and timing beats speed!"