Doctor analyses Conor McGregor's toe injury and reveals whether pull-out was justified

A specialist in sports injuries has given his expert opinion on the toe injury that ruled McGregor out of UFC 303.

Conor McGregor was set to make his much-anticipated UFC return in June, nearly two years after breaking his leg in his third fight with Dustin Poirier.

However, the fight with Michael Chandler had to be postponed after McGregor suffered an injury, with Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka stepping in to take over the main event of UFC 303.

Initially, details of the Irishman’s injury were scarce, but in a series of social media posts, McGregor confirmed that it was a broken pinky toe that ruled him out of the fight.

And Brian Sutterer MD, a sports medicine doctor who posts videos focusing on sports injuries to his YouTube channel, has spoken analysed McGregor’s injury.

He said: “Was this an injury warranted of McGregor withdrawing? Yeah, I think so, absolutely.

“It’s not a fracture that’s going to have that drastic of an effect on your mobility. But it’s enough of a thing that it’s going to affect and throw off your ability to continue your training, keep up your cardio and feel confident with your footwork.

“Especially when you are dealing with an athlete who is coming back from a broken leg, you’re going to have a lower threshold for being affected by an injury.

“I’m sure he’s gonna get all kinds of hate online about withdrawing because of a broken pinky toe. But as pinky toe fractures go, that’s a pretty good one."

Conor McGregor broke his leg in the first round of his last fight against Dustin Poirier. (Image: Getty)

Prior to the fight with Chandler, McGregor had never pulled out of a fight in his 14-fight UFC career.

“Man, we were so f*cking super ready for this fight, it is absolutely gut wrenching to take,” McGregor wrote on Instagram.

“I want that new Bugatti! We had a lapse in concentration and engaged in a training session without wearing the full protective gear and I hit the toe off the elbow and broke the toe clean. It needs a few weeks that’s it.

“This next walk has got to be, and it will be, 100 percent Conor McGregor. The fans deserve it, and we are getting close.

“I’ll be back. See ya’s soon. See ya at the top. Chandler or not.”