Conor McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) is still hoping to make his promotional return at some point in 2026. For months, McGregor has been steadfast about returning on the anticipated White House card on Saturday, June 14 in Washington, DC.
Conor McGregor’s hopes for his next opponent were dashed for now earlier in the week when UFC CEO Dana White mentioned in an interview that plans for “The Notorious” to fight Michael Chandler in Washington were no longer being explored for the month of June. If McGregor gets his way, however, whenever he does fight, it’ll have to be under a new contract.
Any contract that Conor McGregor signs will be inked with the new media deal between the UFC and Paramount Plus in mind. This is the first in a seven-year streaming pact between the parties and McGregor has mentioned that his current contract would be void given the Paramount Plus deal.
While livestreaming a session of the video game Roblox, he reiterated his intentions of fighting on The White House card late this spring, regardless of potential opponent.
“I’m warming up right now for The White House fight,” Conor McGregor said. “I’m going to be at it, for sure. It’s going to be insane, The White House card is going to be.”
As previously mentioned, the UFC has changed media partners. This past summer, the promotion stunned fans by inking a seven-year, $7.7 billion (USD) rights package with Paramount Plus after a seven-year run with Disney-owned ESPN. McGregor says that with a new deal for the promotion, a new deal for him will have to follow.
“I’m going to go into negotiations with the Ultimate Fighting Championship in February,” he said. “I’m very interested to go. They’ve actually got a new deal with Paramount, it’s worth $7.7 billion.”
McGregor’s New Deal to Replace PPV Points
Under the expired deal, major stars, like Conor McGregor, would receive pay-per-view points for appearing on flagship UFC shows, meaning he’d stand to have a decent-sized payday on a given night win or lose. The incoming UFC deal with Paramount Plus has ended the pay-per-view model.
Due to this, despite still having two more contests on his current deal before it officially reaches the expiration point, Conor McGregor is interested in securing a new contract with more permanence to it.
“The company has [quadrupled] its profit, and my contract, essentially, is void right now,” he said. “There’s no more PPV, whereas my contract was based on PPV sales. I’m the highest-generating PPV fighter of all-time. The PPV system is done, I’m due a new contract.”
Is McGregor Posturing?
It’s been close to five years since Conor McGregor last fought inside the fabled UFC Octagon. In June of 2021, McGregor made his most recent walk to the cage for a fight versus Dustin Poirier (30-10, 1 NC MMA, 22-9, 1 NC UFC in a trilogy bout during the UFC 264 main event.
McGregor broke his ankle, forcing him to resign from the contest at the end of the first round. Since then, he’s been out of action.
A planned return bout in June of 2024 against Michael Chandler (23-10 MMA, 2-5 UFC) was nixed after McGregor suffered a broken toe. If and when “The Notorious” returns to action, it will no doubt be welcomed by fans of MMA.
Given that he’s still got time remaining on his current UFC deal, this could very well be a tactic by Conor McGregor and his camp to try and put more money in the till. McGregor is almost 40 years old at this point and the days of him chasing the title are behind him.
Final Thoughts
Conor McGregor is at the point of his MMA career where he’ll only be competing in money fights. He’ll no doubt be a draw for a few more years, so any potential posturing by McGregor is a smart move.
If he’s able to get a new contract signed, he’ll ride off into the sunset as an all-time great with a decent bankroll to retire on. Whether McGregor can secure the new contract he wants remains to be seen.
