"Conor's nowhere near ready" - Dana White shuts down talk of Conor McGregor fighting Charles Oliveira for title soon
Dana White has shut down rumors about Conor McGregor getting a title shot against Charles Oliveira in his first fight back.
Over the past few months, 'The Notorious' has made it clear that he intends to fight for the UFC lightweight title upon his return to the octagon. However, as far as White is concerned, McGregor is a long way from fighting, let alone getting a title shot. During an interview with Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, the UFC boss said:
"Conor's nowhere near ready to start fighting again. Conor still has to go through a lot of s***."
Catch Dana White's comments on Conor McGregor:
White said he believes the earliest McGregor could be back in the octagon is sometime around the fall. The Irishman has been on the sidelines since his freak injury in the main event of UFC 264 last July.
Dana White: Conor McGregor title shot will "depend on who the champion is"
Dana White may have recently shut down the possibility of Conor McGregor getting a title shot. However, he was singing a different tune just a few days ago. In a recent interview with The Underground, he said:
“It’s gonna depend on who the champion is. The champion has some say in that, too. Who’s gonna be the champ when Conor McGregor comes back? And what do they wanna do? If you look at [Charles] Oliveira, right... If it’s still Oliveira by the time he comes back, maybe Oliveira wants Conor. Who knows? I don’t know. We’ll see what happens.”
Check out Dana White's interview below:
Conventionally, fighters don't get awarded a title shot after back-to-back losses. However, it's no secret that McGregor has been exempt from a lot of traditional rules, given his status as the biggest star in the company.
Reigning lightweight champion Charles Oliveira appears to be on board with letting McGregor cut the line at 155 lbs. Appearing as a guest on MMA Fighting’s Portuguese-language podcast Trocação Franca, 'Do Bronx' explained: (Quotes translated by MMA Fighting)
“If I had the chance [in the past] to fight for the belt or fight Conor, everybody knows I’d fight for the belt. That already happened, I’m the champion now. The champion has a name and his name is Charles Oliveira, Charles ‘do Bronx'. If I had the chance to fight Conor for money today, I would."