When Dana White questioned Ilia Topuria’s Conor McGregor super-fight pursuit

Kevin Iole interviewed UFC CEO Dana White in 2024. During the sitdown, White was questioned about Ilia Topuria's desire to face former UFC double champion Conor McGregor.

Ahead of UFC 298, Topuria had voiced his desire to fight 'The Notorious,' claiming that once the former dethrones Alexander Volkanovski, he would want to move to lightweight and challenge the Irishman.

Topuria knocked out Volkanovski at UFC 298 and became the featherweight kingpin, after which he called out McGregor.

Check out Ilia Topuria calling out Conor McGregor below:

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At that time, McGregor was slated to return to the octagon against Michael Chandler at UFC 303. However, the Dubliner withdrew from the bout because of a toe injury. Since then, his octagon return has been in limbo.

Meanwhile, 'El Matador' defended his featherweight strap at UFC 308 by knocking out Max Holloway. In 2025, the Georgian-Spaniard vacated his 145-pound gold and will now face Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 for the vacant lightweight strap.

Before Topuria became the featherweight kingpin, White, when discussing 'El Matador' wanting to fight 'The Notorious,' said:

"I think he has a lot to prove. When you're undefeated, you've never tasted defeat, been on the rise that this guy is on, that's the way you should be thinking. That's what your mentality should be. We will see how it plays out on Saturday night."

Check out Dana White's comments below (3:40):

Dana White reveals Conor McGregor won't fight anytime soon

Conor McGregor hinted at potential retirement in 2025, to pay heed to his political aspirations. However, after Islam Makhachev most recently vacated his 155-pound championship in pursuit of welterweight gold, McGregor called out Dana White and the UFC on social media, with many in the MMA community speculating that it's time for 'The Notorious' to return.

However, White shut down all such rumours during a conversation with Adam Glyn, by saying:

"He's not fighting anytime soon. I haven't talked to him in a minute, but yeah, I don’t know."

Check out Dana White's comments below:

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Subham is a dynamic writer and editor at Sportskeeda, with a background in Health and Fitness, MMA, True-Crime, and Pop Culture.
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When not pursuing athletic feats, he enjoys motorbike rides for mental clarity. Subham finds motivation in role models like Conor McGregor and Yuvraj Singh. He has a diverse taste in music, including Post Malone, Machine Gun Kelly, Russ, and Central Cee.

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Edited by Subham