Sometimes a sporting story is less about the fight than about the old habit of human hope. Dana White, the UFC's chief, has left open the possibility that Conor McGregor, a fighter who has been absent from the cage since 2021, might headline the organization's June 14 card on the South Lawn of the White House. Across the same stretch of spring, Michael Chandler keeps training for a bout that the promoter has already set aside, trusting a promise made years ago. Whether that trust is rewarded will be settled by the matchmaking months ahead, when words given in public must meet the harder test o
Dana White Keeps Conor McGregor in Contention for UFC White House Card
"I don't have a Plan B until Plan A is 100% exhausted."
Mark
Why does a casual comment from Dana White about McGregor carry so much weight?
Mimi
Because McGregor hasn't fought in the UFC since July 2021, and White is saying he's "in the running" for the White House card on June 14. That's the first real indication in a while.
Mark
But White also said McGregor-Chandler isn't the fight.
Mimi
Right. He reconfirmed it. Yet Chandler told Ariel Helwani he has no Plan B until Plan A is exhausted, and he's building his training around June.
Luke
Let's keep apart what's confirmed and what isn't. "In the running" is not a booking. Nothing here says McGregor has a contract or an opponent.
Mark
So Chandler's confidence is just his own position?
Luke
Yes. It's his account of what he's doing and what he believes McGregor wants. White's statement says the opposite about the matchup.
Mimi
Chandler does tie it to a specific promise, the one they made for June 29, 2024, which fell through when McGregor broke his pinky toe.
Mark
And the commercial angle?
Luke
That's the source author's inference: that Paramount+ would want as many viewers as possible and that McGregor could prove he's still a draw. It's plausible, but no one from Paramount is quoted saying it.
Mimi
What is solid is the timeline: matchmaking starts Monday, with hopes of finalizing fights by early-to-mid February.
Luke
And that's a hope, not a deadline.
Il Polso
- Dana White says Conor McGregor is "definitely in the running" for the June 14 White House card, yet he has also ruled out the Chandler fight.
- Michael Chandler is already shaping his training blocks and diet around a McGregor bout, refusing a Plan B until Plan A is fully exhausted.
- McGregor, out since July 2021 and without a win since January 2020, remains unconfirmed while the spectacle of the South Lawn draws closer.
- Matchmaking begins Monday, with fights expected to be finalized by early-to-mid February, and that window will decide whether the promise holds.
Sometimes a sporting story is less about the fight than about the old habit of human hope. Dana White, the UFC's chief, has left open the possibility that Conor McGregor, a fighter who has been absent from the cage since 2021, might headline the organization's June 14 card on the South Lawn of the White House. Across the same stretch of spring, Michael Chandler keeps training for a bout that the promoter has already set aside, trusting a promise made years ago. Whether that trust is rewarded will be settled by the matchmaking months ahead, when words given in public must meet the harder test of contracts and calendars.
On Thursday, Dana White appeared on The Pat McAfee Show and was asked whether Conor McGregor might fight at the UFC's White House event. He didn't shut the door. McGregor, he said, is "definitely in the running," and the two talk often by text. The remark came during a media run promoting the UFC's new Paramount+ deal, and it centered on a card scheduled for Sunday, June 14, on the South Lawn, with President Donald Trump expected to attend.
McGregor, 37, is a former two-division champion who hasn't fought in the UFC since July 2021 and hasn't won since January 2020. His last scheduled appearance, a UFC 303 main event against Michael Chandler in June 2024, collapsed when he was pulled over a broken pinky toe. That canceled bout is why Chandler remains part of the story. White has said McGregor vs. Chandler is "not the fight we're going with," but Chandler isn't treating that as final.
Chandler told Ariel Helwani he is operating as if McGregor is still his opponent. "I don't have a Plan B until Plan A is 100% exhausted," he said, already organizing his training around June. He vouched for McGregor's word, while admitting his rival has made choices that give people pause, and he believes McGregor wants the rematch to fulfill the promise they made for International Fight Week 2024.
For now, the picture is unresolved. White keeps the possibility alive, Chandler prepares as though the fight is certain, and matchmaking, expected to wrap up by early-to-mid February, will reveal who was right.
On Thursday, Dana White sat down with The Pat McAfee Show and was asked whether Conor McGregor might fight at the UFC's White House event. His answer left the door open. McGregor, he said, is "definitely in the running." White added that the two have a great relationship and talk a lot by text.
The appearance was part of a short media run by the UFC CEO to promote the promotion's new Paramount+ deal, which begins Saturday night. The card at the center of the questions is scheduled for Sunday, June 14, on the South Lawn of the White House, with President Donald Trump in attendance. White has since said matchmaking will officially start Monday, with the hope that fights are finalized by early-to-mid February.
McGregor, 37, is a former two-division UFC champion. He has not fought in the UFC since July 2021. In June 2024 he was pulled from a scheduled UFC 303 main event against Michael Chandler because of a broken pinky toe. He has also not won a fight since January 2020.
That canceled bout is why Chandler keeps appearing in the story. White reconfirmed that McGregor vs. Chandler is "not the fight we're going with," even though Chandler and the UFC have mutual respect. Chandler is not acting as though that settles it. He told Ariel Helwani of Uncrowned that he is operating as if McGregor is his opponent. "I don't have a Plan B until Plan A is 100% exhausted," he said, describing how he is already arranging his training blocks and diet around a June date. In his words, the plan is fighting at the White House, and fighting McGregor there.
Chandler also said that if the decision were McGregor's, the two would fight each other. He defended McGregor's reliability, saying McGregor is more of a man of his word than people think. He conceded that McGregor has flown off the handle a couple of times and done things that make people question his decision-making. Even so, Chandler said he believes McGregor wants the fight in order to end the contract the two signed for The Ultimate Fighter, and to make good on the promise they made for June 29, 2024, during International Fight Week.
The source's read is that McGregor looks like a solid possibility for the card, provided he is booked and actually makes the walk. The reasoning is commercial: Paramount+ presumably wants as many viewers as possible for an event that has no precedent, and the "America 250" card could test whether McGregor still draws despite his losing stretch.
For now, the situation is unresolved. White says McGregor is in the running but is not the Chandler fight. Chandler is training for McGregor anyway. The February window for finalizing matchups should show which of them is right.
Citazioni salienti
Conor and I have a great relationship. We talk a lot through text, and he's definitely in the running for this fight.— Dana White, on The Pat McAfee Show
I don't have a Plan B until Plan A is 100% exhausted.— Michael Chandler, to Ariel Helwani of Uncrowned
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