CONOR McGREGOR has been drug tested just days after his UFC return was confirmed.
The Irish superstar, 35, will fight for the first time in nearly three years when he takes on Michael Chandler on June 29 in Las Vegas at UFC 303.
Conor McGregor shared several pictures of him hitting padsInstagram @thenotoriousmma
Instagram @thenotoriousmmaHe also revealed he was drug tested as he posted a picture of a bottle and beaker[/caption]
Instagram @thenotoriousmmaMcGregor is preparing for his long-awaited UFC return on June 29[/caption]
Instagram @thenotoriousmmaIt will be his first fight since breaking his leg in July 2021[/caption]
It was revealed back in February that McGregor had been the most tested UFC fighter of 2024 so far after the organisation severed ties with the United States Anti-Doping Agency last year following a public row over The Notorious’ proposed return.
The UFC‘s partnership with Drug Free Sport began on January 1 and they have been regularly testing McGregor.
And the former two-weight world champion shared the latest of those tests in one of a series of photos on Instagram.
McGregor posted a number of pictures of him hitting pads and stretching in the octagon.
But one showed a drug testing kit, while another saw him getting a haircut.
And he added the short caption: “Ten rounds in the 18oz. Drug tested. Hair cut.”
McGregor hasn’t set foot inside the octagon since breaking his leg in July 2021 during a second successive defeat at the hands of Dustin Poirier.
The Irishman shattered his left tibia and fibula in the closing moments of the first round of his Sin City showdown with Poirier.
McGregor also shared a picture of him getting a haircutInstagram @thenotoriousmma
Instagram @thenotoriousmmaHe is searching for a first win since January 2020[/caption]
McGregor’s return to the octagon was confirmed last weekendInstagram @thenotoriousmma
McGregor’s comeback clash with Chandler was expected to take place late last year but ultimately didn’t come to fruition.
UFC President and CEO Dana White, who announced the fight at a press conference last weekend, said of the delay: “It’s all about timing.
Inside McGregor’s Notorious lifestyle
With more sides to his personality than an Octagon, Conor McGregor’s rise has been an enthralling watch.
Going from UFC icon to entrepreneur and Hollywood star, the Irishman has transcended the sport he helped bring to the masses.
He has four children with fiancee Dee Devlin and the family enjoy a lavish lifestyle.
McGregor has not fought in UFC since breaking his leg in a trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier in 2021.
That has not stopped him amassing a net worth of over £150m thanks to his Proper No Twelve whiskey and fashion line.
And he is due to return to the Octagon at UFC 303 in an eagerly-awaited headline clash with Michael Chandler.
McGregor also starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in the Amazon Prime remake of classic movie Road House, although he is dreading his mum seeing one X-rated scene.
Notorious turned up to the premiere in a £60,000 suit that was outdone by his £460k watch.
The only thing sharper than his fashion sense is his tongue and the Dubliner has several bitter spats under his belt, including with UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.
That row led to one of his biggest controversies in 2018 as he travelled 3,000 miles to confront Khabib in a vicious attack on his bus.
He pleaded guilty to assault after punching a man in a pub in 2018 and had his £150k Bentley seized by police for driving offences four years later.
Joe Rogan lashed out at McGregor in a four-letter outburst and the Irishman has also fired shots at Jake Paul, KSI and Tommy Fury.
Boxing great Floyd Mayweather also has McGregor on his enemy list after the pair clashed in a cross-sport bout in 2017.
Read all of our Conor McGregor stories here.
“Chandler’s has been ready. We talked about this at one of the press conferences recently.
“He had a lot of obligations that he had to deal with.
“What you don’t want him doing is accepting the fight when he has a ton of obligations and he can’t train 100 per cent for the fight.”
McGregor has vowed to deliver the “greatest comeback of all time” in his clash with Chandler.
And White believes it’ll be an almighty achievement for the Irishman if he has his hand raised after his injury-enforced lay-off.
The 54-year-old said: “I think when you look at that injury, it’s happened in the UFC [before].
“We just saw Chris Weidman come back, Anderson [Silva] came back; you’ve seen it in football.
“It’s probably one of the nastiest injuries you could possibly get.
“You see guys with broken arms all the time and stuff like that happens.
“It’s hard for us humans to wrap our brain around that bone breaking.”
It remains to be seen whether he can return to the top of the sportInstagram @thenotoriousmma
McGregor’s comeback fight will be at 170lbsInstagram @thenotoriousmma