Report: 'Pessimism' Conor McGregor's UFC 303 Fight vs. Chandler Will Take Place

It appeared that the UFC was moving forward with the Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler main event at UFC 303 on June 29, but it now sounds like the fight is in jeopardy.

MMA journalist Ariel Helwani reported on Tuesday that "there seems to [be] pessimism all over again regarding the status of the 303 main event."

It was less than a week ago that Helwani reported on The MMA Hour that there was "great positivity" and "great optimism" that the McGregor vs. Chandler fight would go on as scheduled after previous speculation that it was in danger of being postponed.

When UFC abruptly canceled a pre-fight press conference in Dublin, Ireland, last Monday, many began to wonder if McGregor wouldn't be able to make his return to the Octagon later this month. The UFC reportedly began exploring other options for the UFC 303 main event in case it was necessary to pivot to a different fight.

Helwani noted in his update on Tuesday that "since this morning, multiple sources are now saying feelers are being sent out again for June 29" for "replacement and/or new fight(s)." He added that it sounds like there's "even more pessimism—it seems—than on Monday last week after the presser was canceled at the last minute."

McGregor hasn't fought since he suffered a broken leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021. In addition to rehabbing the injury, he made his feature film debut in the remake of Road House and also starred opposite Chandler on a season of The Ultimate Fighter reality competition series. It took a while for the two of them to settle on a fight date, but their matchup was set to headline the UFC's annual International Fight Week.

Now, it sounds like fans could be waiting a while longer to see McGregor back in the Octagon again.