Dana White Reveals Targeted Return Date, Opponent For Conor McGregor

Given the financial reward he earned by boxing Floyd Mayweather last August, many had thought that Conor McGregor would never return to the Octagon, but he recently said that he still has a passion for fighting and that an MMA bout would be next for him.

Of course, anything could happen, but UFC President Dana White is hoping to have his lightweight champion return to action by next summer:

“Let’s get through the holidays and hopefully he starts to get the itch to come back and hopefully we can get him back this summer,” White said, when asked about McGregor’s status during an appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter on Thursday.

From a financial standpoint, the brash Irishman certainly doesn’t ever have to fight again, but White is hoping that McGregor will be ready to ‘get back on the grind’ in the near future:

“Money is always a factor but we’ve never had a problem getting a deal done with Conor McGregor. I don’t see that being a problem,” White said. “The question is does he want to come back and do it? No matter how much money you make, I always feel like with certain people you can only go on so many vacations, there’s only so much stuff you can buy and then you’re ready to get back to the grind, hopefully.”

As far as who McGregor will take on in a potential return, as always, the “Notorious” one has options, although White said that he’ll need to defend his title against interim 155-pound champion Tony Ferguson first and foremost:

“What we have to do is – he needs to defend that title,” White said on FOX Sports’ Undisputed when asked what he thought was next for McGregor.

“Tony Ferguson is the fight right now and is the move if (McGregor) wants to come back.”

Who would you like to see McGregor fight next?