Conor McGregor. AP FILE PHOTO
LOS ANGELES, United States — Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White on Monday refuted a claim by Irish superstar Conor McGregor that a deal had been brokered to see him fight Nate Diaz in a rematch in July.
Featherweight champion McGregor had stunned the mixed martial arts world last week by announcing his “retirement” before later backtracking and claiming he had not decided to hang up his gloves.
The UFC responded by removing the 27-year-old from the billing for his July 9 fight with Diaz on the UFC 200 card in Las Vegas.
READ: Conor McGregor a no-show, and off of UFC 200 | Conor McGregor tweets he’s to ‘retire young’; Diaz responds
However McGregor insisted in a tweet on Monday that he was back on the card and looking forward to fighting.
“Happy to announce that I am BACK on UFC 200! Shout out to @danawhite and @lorenzofertitta on getting this one done for the fans. #Respect,” McGregor wrote.
However in an interview with the TMZ sports website, White said he was baffled by McGregor’s announcement.
“It’s not true. We haven’t talked to Conor or his manager since the press conference. I don’t know why he would tweet that,” White said.
“I don’t know how many more times I can say the fight is off or how many more press conferences I can have saying the fight is off for people to believe it’s off.”
In a rambling and profanity-laced statement on Facebook last week, McGregor had suggested his disenchantment with the UFC was linked to his unwillingness to abide by promotional commitments mandated by the organization.
“I am paid to fight. I am not yet paid to promote. I have become lost in the game of promotion and forgot about the art of fighting,” McGregor said.
“There comes a time when you need to stop handing out flyers and get back to the damn shop.”