Alex Pereira ‘Cannot judge’ Conor McGregor for UFC 303 exit: ‘It’s hard to fight with a broken pinky’
UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira says he’s not judging Conor McGregor for pulling out of his UFC 303 fight.
McGregor was supposed to headline UFC 303 against Michael Chandler in his first fight since he broke his leg in the trilogy against Dustin Poirier. However, just over two weeks from the fight, McGregor was forced to withdraw due to a broken toe, and since then, many fighters have criticized the Irishman for withdrawing due to a minor injury.
However, Pereira, who stepped up on short notice to headline UFC 303, says he isn’t judging McGregor and says it is hard to fight with a broken toe and a risky decision.
Alex Pereira defends Conor McGregor amid injury setback from UFC 303
“I cannot judge whether he fights or not because honestly, he’s in (sic) a point in his life where he secured himself on many different financial aspects,” Alex Pereira told ESPN. “Maybe he was fighting in a much different scenario than I’m fighting. Maybe if I was fighting in the situation where he is in life right now, I don’t know if I would do it, too. So, I cannot judge how bad it is.
“It is hard to fight with a broken pinky [toe],” Alex Pereira continued. “It is a risky decision, very risky decision to fight with a broken toe. I broke one before the fight, it was bad, in the fight I broke the other one. Maybe if it was the other one, I wouldn’t have been able to fight, so I cannot weigh that, but I made the right choice.”
Pereira is set to headline UFC 303 in a rematch against Jiri Prochazka as he looks to defend his title for the second time.
Following Conor McGregor being out of UFC 303, he took to social media to reveal the injury he sustained.
After McGregor said he broke his pinky toe in training, he released a lengthy statement saying he’s only going to fight when he is 100% healthy as he can’t make the walk to the Octagon injured anymore.
“I hit the toe off the elbow and broke the toe clean. It needs a few weeks that’s it. I couldn’t justify to my team, or fans, that I make the walk hindered again. That walk has been seen. This next walk has got to be, and it will be, 100% Conor McGregor. The fans deserve it and we are getting close. A slight lapse in concentration and a nuisance of an injury was picked up. That’s it. Take the lesson and move forward. I will get this back. I’ve got to,” McGregor wrote on Instagram.
McGregor is currently 22-6 as a pro and coming off back-to-back losses to Dustin Poirier.
What are your thoughts on Alex Pereira’s short-notice headliner at UFC 303 this weekend?
