Who Should ‘The Notorious’ Fight in His Return to the Octagon and the UFC?
‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor shocked the MMA world on Tuesday after announcing his desire to return inside the octagon. This comes after a five-year hiatus, where he lost his last fight against Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier after suffering a gruesome leg injury similar to ‘The All-American’ Chris Weidman. He has gone on to do other things outside the UFC during his time away from fighting. While most fans are cautiously optimistic about McGregor’s comeback, one big question remains: who does he fight in his return bout? We’ll go over four opponents who could welcome the legend back into the octagon.
Michael Chandler
This matchup makes the most sense. McGregor and ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler were the coaches for season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter. They were supposed to fight at the main event of UFC 303 before McGregor backed out due to an injury sustained in training camp. While they weren’t able to fight, it had an immense amount of hype; they generated a lot of buzz on social media for their back-and-forth trash talk throughout the show and in other videos outside the show. They could easily rekindle the friction to sell the fight to fans. In their last four fights, both men have only one win. Fans could argue that both men need to win their next fight, and in doing so, the other might get cut from the promotion.
Max Holloway
This fight could be a bit of a stretch, but it could have some sort of meaning should the BMF belt stay active. Both men fought each other early on in their UFC careers, with ‘The Notorious’ picking up the win via unanimous decision. Max ‘Blessed’ Holloway said that he wants another crack at both the BMF and Lightweight Championships. His last two fights were rematches, and he could look to avenge another early defeat in his career along the way. Max and Conor want the same type of fight. With Holloway as the volume puncher and McGregor as the surgical striker, this could be an exciting fight should both men be on their A game. If Charles ‘do Bronxs’ Olivera wants to fight and defend his BMF belt, ‘The Notorious’ could be a worthy opponent. McGregor is the definition of a BMF champion. He wants to beat up the best fighters with his striking and embarrass them while doing so. The 37-year-old Irish fighter’s greatest weakness has been fighters with an elite ground game, but he would train to defend takedowns and minimize damage on the ground. Holloway would need to do the same, along with improving his movement greatly, to have any type of success against a healthy Olivera.
Michael Page
Let’s say McGregor doesn’t want to cut down to 155 pounds. Welterweight would be his new home should that be the case. If you had mentioned that McGregor and Michael ‘Venom’ Page would be in the UFC at the same time 10 years ago, fight fans would have gone wild, begging for both men to be on the same card to showcase entertaining fights. In their primes, they were two of the most entertaining showmen of their generation in their respective companies. Some fight fans have soured over MVP due to his point-fighting style and lack of engagement in his most recent fight against Sam Patterson. ‘The Notorious’ would not take kindly to any lack of engagement. He loves to trade. He has shown he is elite at leading out and counterstriking. While he gives up about half a foot in height and reach, the 37-year-old has fought at the Welterweight Division before in his iconic series against Nate Diaz, where he was at a disadvantage in the same categories. While MVP is a more dynamic striker than Diaz, the latter had a ground game that MVP doesn’t have to worry about. Should ‘The Notorious’ win at the Welterweight Division, there is a legitimate opportunity for him to go on a revenge tour against Khabib ‘The Eagle’ Nurmagomedov’s team and the people he’s close with. Whether it would be successful or not remains to be seen. Marketing that journey would sell itself.
Jean Silva
At one point in 2025, Dana White said McGregor was looking to return to the Featherweight Division. If he chooses to return to the division he started in, it could lead him towards the fastest title shot. The division is top-heavy, but the elite featherweights are menaces who would test ‘The Notorious’. One name in particular that blends entertainment and skill in McGregor’s return fight would be Jean ‘Lord’ Silva. A fairly new face who has quickly cracked into the top-10 at featherweight, Silva has won seven of his eight fights in the UFC, with finishes in five of those seven wins. Silva’s antics would add a new element that ‘The Notorious’ hasn’t seen before in his fights in the octagon. Who knows what tactics Silva comes up with to confuse or distract McGregor? Both men have a high finish rate and love to throw hands. Silva is a threat on the feet and ground. The 37-year-old Irish fighter needs to train extensively on takedown defense and ground work to increase his chances of winning. This type of challenge could unlock the best version of him, and any evolution to McGregor’s game would be great to watch.
