Conor McGregor has accepted an 18-month period of ineligibility for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping policy, meaning he will be eligible to compete in March next year.
Last month, McGregor appeared to announce his opponent for the much-anticipated UFC White House event on June 14 as he prepares to make a comeback following a four-year hiatus.
Speaking in an interview with Fox & Friends, the Irishman said: “The Mac is excited to get back for sure. "I’m on [the White House card]. This is me."
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He added: “[I’m fighting] Michael Chandler. Michael Chandler and myself have done the show The Ultimate Fighter, we’ve had a good back and forth. He’s a good, tough guy.”
UFC president Dana White confirmed that he wanted the former two-division champion to headline the event in 2026.
Speaking about that prospect during a recent interview with The W.A.D.E. Concept, White said: "Say what you will about Conor McGregor because people like to talk sh*t about that too, but he is that guy, and he's always been that guy."
UFC release statement confirming Conor McGregor's 18-month sanction
Just weeks after McGregor made the comments about next year's White House event and the UFC have released a statement to confirm that he has accepted an 18-month period of ineligibility for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping policy.
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As mentioned below, the Combat Sports Anti-Doping (CSAD) reduced McGregor's sanction after taking his cooperation and circumstances into account.
The statement read: "Combat Sports Anti-Doping (CSAD) announced today that Conor McGregor, of Dublin, Ireland, has accepted an 18-month period of ineligibility for a violation of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy (UFC ADP).
"McGregor missed three attempted biological sample collections within a 12-month period in 2024, which constitutes a violation of the UFC ADP. UFC athletes are required to provide accurate whereabouts information at all times, so they can be contacted and submit to biological sample collections without prior warning.
"McGregor’s missed tests occurred on June 13, September 19, and September 20, 2024, and were each classified as Whereabouts Failures by CSAD under the UFC ADP.
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"Although McGregor failed to make himself available for testing on those dates, CSAD noted that he was recovering from an injury and was not preparing for an upcoming fight at the time of the three missed tests.
"McGregor fully cooperated with CSAD’s investigation, accepted responsibility, and provided detailed information that CSAD determined contributed to the missed tests."
The statement continued: "Despite these mitigating factors, CSAD emphasizes that accurate whereabouts filings and the ability to conduct unannounced testing are essential to the success of the UFC ADP.
"Taking McGregor’s cooperation and circumstances into account, CSAD reduced the standard 24-month sanction for three whereabouts failures by six months. His period of ineligibility began on September 20, 2024 (the date of his third whereabouts failure) and will conclude on March 20, 2026."
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McGregor hasn't fought in the octagon for more than four years, with his last fight coming at UFC 264 in July 2021, where he suffered a broken leg in the first round of his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier.
The 37-year-old was expected to make his comeback against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 last year but that fight was cancelled after he suffered a broken toe in the build-up.
Topics: Conor McGregor, UFC, MMA
Jack Kenmare