Twenty-nine-year-old McGregor hasn’t set foot inside the Octagon since claiming the UFC lightweight title in the main event of UFC 205, a card which saw him become the first fighter in the promotion’s history to hold two titles simultaneously.
The Irishman’s last outing in the combat sports world saw him take part in a multi-million-pound boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr, which he lost via a tenth-round TKO.
Earlier this month, McGregor hinted that his next fight could see him return to the boxing world unless the UFC give him a new and improved contract.
“My focus is getting back into the right ring or Octagon,” he told Betsafe. “2017 was historic. I have transcended both the sport of MMA and boxing.
“At this stage of my career, as it has been for the majority of my UFC career, potential opponents must lobby for fights with me.
“We could see Conor McGregor anywhere. I run the fight game, the fashion game, the whiskey game, or whatever the next business endeavour might be.”
Ireland’s first UFC belt holder seemingly pulled a U-turn on those comments last Friday by revealing that he wants his next fight to take place inside the cage.
“We’ll see what happens,” McGregor told TMZ. “I think a true fight is what I want to do next. A real fight, what’s a real fight? MMA next.”
And judging from his recent Instagram post, the ‘The Notorious’ is preparing for his first mixed martial arts fight in over a year.
On Sunday night, McGregor posted a picture of a recent training session at SBG Ireland in Dublin, which showed him working on his grappling.
The accompanying caption read: “Solid rounds tonight at @sbgireland.”
McGregor’s first fight back in the UFC, who have struggled to replicate the pay-per-view success they had in 2016 without their poster boy, is expected to take place in the spring.
The man in pole position to welcome the Dubliner back to the Octagon is interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson.