In our most recent Conor McGregor story, he provided fans with a preview of his upcoming Hollywood film debut in the remake of the classic motion picture Road House.
In the following article published on this very same day five years ago, the business McGregor had to attend to was solely regarding his MMA career and his then-championship status following a fair warning from UFC President Dana White.
[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JANUARY 15, 2018, 1:58 AM, EST]
Headline: Dana White Says Conor McGregor Will be Stripped of Title if he Waits Until September
Author: Fernando Quiles Jr.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) president Dana White claims Conor McGregor is going to be stripped of his lightweight title if he decides not to fight until September.
McGregor won the 155-pound gold back in Nov. 2016. He hasn’t seen action inside the Octagon since. In 2017, McGregor was focused on a “money fight” with Floyd Mayweather. That bout was contested inside a boxing ring.
Back in October, Tony Ferguson submitted Kevin Lee to capture the interim lightweight championship. Khabib Nurmagomedov made his return last month and dominated Edson Barboza. The two seem to be on track for an undisputed title bout.
That’s exactly the direction White is looking at as he told the FOX Sports 1 panel following UFC Fight Night 124:
“If he (McGregor) comes back in September, that’s almost two years. That can’t happen. It’s not fair to everybody else. Love Conor, respect Conor, love everything that he’s done for this company. Everybody knows that, I say it all the time. (But) the belt would have to move on. You do Khabib vs. Tony; we’re working on that fight now. If and when Conor comes back, he would get the first crack at the title.”