According to UFC Chairman Dana White, the tournament still facilitates Conor McGregor. The “scandalous guy” is treating a recurrent injury. McGregor's recovery process was not revealed, but according to Dana White, he could play in early 2025.
The last time McGregor played in an UFC event was in July 2021. It was the time when he encountered Dustin Poirier, and was forced to retreat after the first half closed. The broken leg in that match also made McGregor take more time to recover than expected.
Initially, UFC scheduled to return to McGregor in June 2024, 3 years from the time he was injured. However, the match between McGregor and Michael Chandler was later canceled. The reason is because McGregor suddenly relapsed injuries, and did not guarantee the competition conditions.
At the present time, the image of Conor McGregor is appearing in some movie theaters. He said he was very excited to return to UFC, but he would only play under the conditions allowed. For that reason, the encounter between McGregor and Chandler has not been able to take place.
On the side of Michael Chandler, this boxer has not played any match for the past 2 years. The main reason why Michael Chandler could not compete was because he was guaranteed to compete with McGregor. However, McGregor's schedule was constantly back because of a recurrent injury.