Conor McGregor’s return match is approaching, but the man’s condition is in doubt.
Las Vegas casinos, F1 pits and luxury yachts.
Freestyle wrestling megastar Conor McGregor has spent the last few years living a wild and fast-paced luxury life.
The 34-year-old Irishman is still an active athlete, but he has been seen in the gym – at least based on his public image – less and less every year.
It has been reported that McGregor will return to the UFC ring in the fall when he faces by Michael Chandler. Although the match itself is known, the timing of the match is shrouded in mystery.
Chandler would surely be ready by now, but McGregor’s situation is a complete mystery. Can the wildly partying superstar really be match fit this coming fall?
Silk sheets
McGregor stripped on the deck of a yacht during the F1 weekend in Monaco. PDO
Iltalehti’s martial arts expert Jaakko Dahlbacka states that money and a comfortable life have done their job for McGregor.
– How did Marvin Hagler’s saying go now: When there are silk sheets, it’s hard to wake up at five in the morning for a run, Dahlbacka says.
Hagler is a late middleweight boxing legend.
– When there are millions in the account, nice boats and all the doors are open, I understand that there is more to do than being sweaty in the gym twisting, says Dahlbacka.
McGregor’s body has grown during the UFC years from featherweight (66 kg) to middleweight (77 kg). Now he has even painted the Chandler fight as a middleweight (84 kg) fight, although that proposal is unlikely to come true.
– He wants to compete in the heavyweight division sometimes. In his own opinion, he probably weighs everything between 50 and 150 kilos, Dahlbacka wonders.
– Conor has such an egoist aura that he likes to appear as big as possible. He bulges and spreads. It’s part of his character.
D question
Jaakko Dahlbacka is Iltalehti’s martial arts expert. Jenni Gästgivar
McGregor’s bulging muscles have raised questions about whether he is using banned substances. The rumors have been intensified by the fact that the Irishman has not been tested for doping in almost two years.
McGregor left the US anti-doping organization USADA’s testing pool in the summer of 2021, after he had fought his last UFC fight so far.
The situation has started D-speculations.
– At one time, many people have separated themselves from the test pool that they can cheat, Dahlbacka reminds.
In theory, McGregor could have sought help from banned substances for his shocking leg injury he suffered in his previous fight. The man’s leg snapped off above the ankle.
Of course, no one can know the truth, and naturally the contestant has not been caught using prohibited substances.
– I am not saying that it is right, but I understand what is being done in it, Dahlbacka formulates.
Head swollen
McGregor (left) was stabbed at a boxing night in Dublin in May. PDO
One detail in McGregor’s changed appearance has rung alarm bells particularly strongly. The UFC star’s face seems to have swollen at the same rate as the rest of his body.
Nasty tongues eagerly remind us that growth hormone increases all growth, including facial growth. It is natural for an untested athlete to have doubts.
– On the other hand, Conor is a grown man who leads a comfortable life, so it’s really annoying anyway. I don’t dare make a doping diagnosis based on appearance alone, Dahlbacka says.
A fighter must be on the USADA roster for at least six months before he can jump into the UFC cage. In addition, he must provide two negative doping samples.
However, Dahlbacka wouldn’t bet that the rules apply to the sport’s biggest superstar. McGregor himself has threatened that he is an exceptional case.
– The UFC is looking for some medical basis or justification for him to be able to correct that six-month test streak, the expert guesses.
Money talks
McGregor was in Dublin to support his compatriot Katie Taylor. PDO
The UFC has the opportunity to apply for special permits from Usada for its fighters, if they are called to fight, for example, from retirement or otherwise with short notice.
When they start applying for a special permit for McGregor, rationality and morality can be thrown into the scrap heap.
– Money determines everything the UFC does. They are looking for an excuse to make McGregor fight – even if it’s against the rules, Dahlbacka thinks.
When — or if — the long-awaited matchup against Chandler ever happens, it will be one of the UFC’s biggest events ever.
Dahlbacka doesn’t consider either duo a championship-level contender, but that doesn’t stop the UFC’s marketing machine from ripping off McGregor’s return.
– UFC will hype him for sure, and Conor himself too. Coach John Kavanagh as a businessman, you can see that now it’s worth saying that McGregor is better than ever. Everyone benefits financially.
This is what McGregor looked like in 2016. PDO