Dana White remains coy on whether Conor McGregor will receive exemption to make UFC return” ‘I don’t know’
Dana White is staying out of the growing drama between Conor McGregor and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
‘The Notorious’ is currently in the middle of filming the 31st season of the UFC’s popular reality series The Ultimate Fighter. Scheduled to air between May and August of this year, Conor McGregor is expected to return to the Octagon for a showdown with opposing coach ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler. However, McGregor is yet to re-enter the USADA testing pool and has since engaged in a war of words with the anti-doping agency after contradicting his social media comments.
Conor McGregor suggested on more than one occasion that he would be the recipient of an exemption that would allow him to provide two tests ahead of his return, leapfrogging the standard six-month testing requirement. USADA quickly disputed McGregor’s statement, revealing that ‘The Notorious’ would need to be in the testing pool for a minimum of six months, just like every other athlete.
Dana White Comments on Conor McGregor’s Status With USADA
Conor McGregor didn’t appreciate the agency speaking out and contradicting his statement. In true McGregor fashion, the former two-division UFC titleholder went on a Twitter rant.
“Usada is going in the bin,” McGregor wrote in tweets that have since been deleted. “This is my issue. I’ve not lied once. Nor have I tested positive. Ever. I have over 70 clean tests under this program, yet they are consistently coming out after I speak in a manner that makes it seem I am lying. It’s ridiculous. F—k [USADA]. You are in The Bin.“
Speaking to the media ahead of Saturday’s UFC 286 pay-per-view at the O2 Arena, Dana White was asked bout McGregor’s status with USADA and if he could potentially receive an exemption.
“I have no idea,” White quickly replied. “I don’t pay any attention to that sh*t,” White admitted. “That’s not my job anymore and I’m happy to be out of it. Talk to USADA, I have no idea. I want nothing to do with the whole drug-testing side of this business. It’s a f*cking nightmare.“
USADA has confirmed that as of now, McGregor has not re-entered the testing pool, nor has he contacted the agency to inform them of his intent to come out of retirement. If ‘The Notorious’ makes himself available for testing immediately, his earliest potential return date would be mid-September. That is right around the timeline Michael Chandler was expecting to meet the Irishman inside the Octagon, but the longer McGregor fights with USADA, the less likely it is that he will be back inside the Octagon before the end of the year.
