Rumors continue to swirl surrounding Conor McGregor’s return to the UFC. Chael Sonnen, retired middleweight and light heavyweight-turned-commentator, says McGregor may well return to face a long-time rival this July.
With International Fight Week looming only a few months away, Chael Sonnen says the UFC wants to book Diaz vs McGregor 3 as a high priority.
Sonnen: UFC Targeting Diaz vs McGregor 3 for July
On the Chael Sonnen with Jorge Sedano show, Sonnen revealed his prediction. “A lot of rumors going around about International Fight Week, which is the first week of July.
A very strong rumor in our industry is that Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor are kind of being groomed for that. I wasn’t so sold on it. I know that at one point, and I’m only as good as the information I’m given, he [McGregor] could be back in August.
But when I look at Conor McGregor, and I look at that picture that he weighed 194-pounds eight weeks ago, and now I see this training video. This is a guy that is working hard, this is a guy that is starting to get his diet under control.
I think perhaps he is targeting a return earlier than August. I tend to believe the rumor of Conor vs. Nate part three, international fight weekend.”
Conor McGregor has been out of action ever since he sustained a brutal leg break fighting Dustin Poirier last July. The loss was his third at lightweight, and may well have marked the end of Conor McGregor’s time in the 155 pound division. McGregor was once lightweight champ, but his title-winning victory over Eddie Alvarez in 2016 marks his only win in that division.
In recovery, McGregor stacked on weight, with some estimates placing him at the middleweight limit of 185 pounds these days. Nate Diaz currently fights in the 170-pound welterweight division, where McGregor has had more success, including a first-round knockout victory over Cowboy Cerrone.
Diaz and McGregor are currently one win apiece against one another. Diaz won their first fight via rear naked choke after McGregor’s cardio let him down. In the gruelling five-round rematch, McGregor earned a decision victory. The trilogy fight makes sense for both fighters at this stage.
Both are returning from long layoffs and losing streaks. Both appear comfortable at 170 pounds, and the fight could easily set up another money-spinning match for either fighter against the game’s second-biggest star: Jorge Masvidal.
Maybe Conor McGregor will even get his third UFC belt from Masvidal, this one inscribed with the letters “BMF”. Do you want to see McGregor vs Diaz 3? Let us know in the comments.
