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Once it became absolutely crystal clear that there was no way that Conor McGregor was going to be fighting in 2023, eyes immediately turned to the 2024 schedule and what that might mean for one of combat sports’ biggest superstars.
Obviously, as with every year, there’s International Fight Week. But that seems more likely to be the landing spot for Jon Jones. If McGregor was going to be fighting anytime in the first half of next year, the clearest destination was UFC 300. Another centennial mark for the world’s largest MMA promotion, which has—in the past anyway—meant a massive PPV offering for fans. Who better to make that happen than ‘The Notorious’ Irishman?
Helwani suggests UFC leaning away from Conor McGregor
If Conor McGregor seems the obvious choice for UFC 300—it even seemingly aligns with his six month drug testing window—it may just be that the brass have other plans. In a recent interview on the TimboSugarShow, longtime MMA reporter Ariel Helwani dropped a little grist into the rumor mill. Speaking to bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley, Helwani revealed that the UFC may be planning a smaller event for the SBG talent, hoping to build multiple high-selling PPVs instead of just one massive event.
“Sometimes I feel like the UFC—because Conor [McGregor] is such a big deal—they try to find like the perfect scenario for him to fight in,” Helwani explained after revealing that he’d heard “maybe plans are changing” with regards to McGregor at UFC 300. (transcript via MMA News). “And I can understand, from a business stand point, why you wouldn’t want to put him on 300.”
“300 is going to sell itself because of the pageantry of the number, and whatnot. So maybe, if you put him on 301, you get two bites of that million-buy apple—if you get what I’m saying. Because maybe 301 wouldn’t be great without him.
“But to me? Come on man. Conor’s ready to go, who knows how many fights he has left in him. He’s foaming at the mouth, he’s almost begging for a fight. Put him on that damn card”
Sean O’Malley wanted UFC 300 spot
While Sean O’Malley already has his next fight set, against Marlon Vera at UFC 299 on March 9th, ‘Sugar’ had hoped to get a spot on UFC 300. Instead, however—and perhaps speaking to the kind of math that Helwani was speculating on—O’Malley recently revealed that the UFC wanted the MMA Lab talent to headline his own card, rather than sharing billing with other stars.
“I called out ‘Chito’ for December,” O’Malley said in an interview on the Joe Rogan Experience. “But then I talked to the UFC and they kind of already had—they were trying to get Colby (Covington) and Leon (Edwards) together. I asked them, and they want me to main event my own show, which I think is ****ing dope. I’m down with that.”
“I think UFC 300 is in April,” he added later. “That would be a sweet card to be on, but … I’m going to guess (I’ll be back) before that, before UFC 300.”
What’s left for UFC 300 then?
With O’Malley booked and McGregor potentially on the move, it’s worth asking just who the UFC might lean on to headline their 300th PPV event. Jon Jones is currently recovering from injury, Sean Strickland is set to defend his title at UFC 297, Leon Edwards at UFC 296, Islam Makhachev will likely be in the middle of Ramadan, And Alexander Volkanovski is set to defend his belt at UFC 298. Simlarly, Sean O’Malley and Alexandre Pantoja have bookings out in front of them and the women’s bantamweight title will be on the line at UFC 297 as well.
If the UFC isn’t going to go with Conor McGregor, that leaves them three distinct options. Alex Pereira, Alexa Grasso, and Weili Zhang. Considering none of those three have shown themselves to be a proven draw on their own, that’s a pretty tall task for the promotion and the high expectations they’ve set in the past.
UFC 100 was headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir, with GSP facing Thiago Alves in the co main and a grudge match between Dan Henderson and Michael Bisping to round things out. Before a number of fight cancellations, UFC 200 was set to be headlined by Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz 2, alongside Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier 2.
Even with neither of those fights taking place we still got the return of Brock Lesnar, Daniel Cormier vs. Anderson Silva, Jose Aldo vs. Frankie Edgar 2, and one of the last fights of Cain Velasquez’s career. All alongside an Amanda Nunes vs. Miesha Tate headliner. It wasn’t as special as it could have been, but not for lack of trying.
Is the UFC really going to try and headline UFC 300 with Alex Pereira vs. Jamahal Hill alongside Weili Zhang vs. Yan Xiaonan? If that’s the route, then it’s going to feel a lot less like something special, and a lot more like just another fight card in a never-ending run of events.