Conor McGregor said he intends to delay his return to MMA and has agreed to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India.
McGregor, a former two-weight UFC champion, has not fought since he broke his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021. He had been due to face Michael Chandler at UFC 303 in June, but withdrew with an injured foot.
“The rumors of a bout with [Ilia Topuria] are false,” McGregor said in a post on X on Tuesday.
“I am in preliminary agreements with the Ambani family to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India. I have agreed. I will then seek my return to the Octagon.”
Paul, who is also a YouTuber, has appeared in four exhibition boxing fights, including a draw and a defeat to KSI, a draw with Floyd Mayweather and a win against MMA fighter Dillon Danis.
However, he has become more known for his time in WWE, where he won the U.S. Championship in November 2023.
McGregor has appeared in a professional boxing bout only once — a 2017 fight against Mayweather. which ended in a 10th-round TKO defeat.
The Irish fighter was found liable by a civil jury in Dublin last month in a case in which a woman said McGregor sexually assaulted her in a hotel room in December 2018.
The High Court in Dublin ordered him to pay the complainant €248,000 ($257,000). McGregor, who said in court he had consensual sex with the woman, has said he intends to appeal the decision.
He is not currently facing any criminal charges related to the case, although multiple companies have pulled McGregor-related products.
Source: www.espn.com