5 things we learned from Conor McGregor's most recent Twitter Q&A

Despite suffering a pair of devastating losses to his bitter rival Dustin Poirier in 2021, Conor McGregor undoubtedly remains the UFC’s biggest superstar.

McGregor is currently on the shelf with a serious leg injury, but ‘The Notorious’ always knows how to keep his name in the news. A recent Twitter Q&A from the Irishman has ensured that won’t change.

Conor McGregor’s Twitter session saw him take questions from a handful of his millions of fans. While it’s hard to know exactly whether to take ‘The Notorious’ seriously when he posts on social media, some of his answers were fascinating.

With that in mind, here are five things we learned from Conor McGregor’s latest Twitter Q&A.

---

#5. Conor McGregor expects to return to the UFC at some point in 2022

Conor McGregor suffered a serious leg imjury in his fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264

The big question on everyone’s lips when it comes to Conor McGregor right now is exactly when he’ll be ready to return to action.

‘The Notorious’ suffered a major leg injury in his clash with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 when the tibia and fibula of his left leg were snapped. Naturally, he’s been on the shelf ever since.

Some fans and rivals clearly believe that the Irishman might be ready to return imminently. Max Holloway, for instance, challenged ‘The Notorious’ after his recent win over Yair Rodriguez, only for UFC president Dana White to instantly pour cold water over the idea.

Based on Conor McGregor’s recent Twitter Q&A, White was probably correct in assuming that the Irishman won’t be back any time soon. While McGregor did claim that his leg is now healed, stating that he can’t wait to “wrap this steel bar in his leg across the neck of a future opponent,” he also suggested that patience is required before he returns.

Later, he outright said he won’t be ready to fully spar MMA until April 2022, suggesting that any potential return to the octagon for him won’t be until after that time.

With that considered, it’s probably fair to guess that the earliest we’ll see Conor McGregor in action might be next summer.

#4. Conor McGregor doesn’t appear to be impressed with Kamaru Usman and believes he can beat him

Conor McGregor has claimed that he's spotted holes in Kamaru Usman's game

Conor McGregor also discussed one dominant champion during his Q&A. The UFC has a number of candidates for 2021’s fighter of the year, but reigning UFC welterweight kingpin Kamaru Usman is probably at the front of the queue.

‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ has made three successful title defenses this year, knocking out Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal and defeating Colby Covington via decision. He’s also currently ranked as the UFC’s top pound-for-pound fighter. However, despite those accomplishments, it seems as though Conor McGregor is not all that impressed by Usman and his style in the octagon.

When asked how he felt about a fight with the Nigerian, Conor McGregor stated that he felt that Covington “lumped him up” in their clash at UFC 268 and probably would’ve won the fight had Usman not decked him in the second round.

More to the point, the Irishman claimed he sees holes in Usman’s game, notably a “suspect dome." He then stated that he’d be confident in defeating him for the UFC welterweight title.

How much we can take from this is anyone’s guess, as after his two losses to Dustin Poirier, the idea of McGregor challenging for the UFC welterweight title seems like a pipe dream. However, Usman vs. McGregor would definitely be a massive drawing card for the UFC should they choose to pull it out.

Assuming the Irishman can win his next fight, stranger things have happened...

---

#3. Conor McGregor still wants to end his rivalry with Nate Diaz with a trilogy bout

Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz put on a pair of classic wars in 2016

While Conor McGregor’s fights with Dustin Poirier, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Eddie Alvarez were all historic in their own way, perhaps his most famous rivalry was against Nate Diaz in 2016.

‘The Notorious’ stepped up to 170 pounds for the first time ever at UFC 196 that year to take on Diaz, who took the fight on late notice following the withdrawal of Rafael dos Anjos. In a huge upset at the time, Diaz took the fight to McGregor and choked him out, becoming the first fighter to defeat the Irishman in the UFC.

Five months later, the rivals rematched at UFC 202, with ‘The Notorious’ taking a razor-close decision after an all-time classic war. The event itself set a new record for the UFC’s largest pay-per-view buyrate.

Ever since then, UFC fans have wondered whether they’ll ever get to see a trilogy bout between the two. Based on Conor McGregor’s recent Twitter Q&A, he’d definitely be down for it.

So will the UFC look to book this bout in 2022? It’s definitely possible. Diaz does have just one fight remaining on his current deal with the promotion, but he also looks past his best now, making him a beatable foe for McGregor.

Add in the fact that a fight between the two would undoubtedly draw plenty of money and it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see the UFC book it in order to fully introduce ‘The Notorious’ to the welterweight division in his comeback next year.

#2. Conor McGregor has plenty of respect for two of his fellow UFC stars

Conor McGregor showed plenty of respect to Michael Chandler in his recent Q&A

Conor McGregor is one of the greatest trash-talkers in UFC history. His feuds with the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov, Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier will go down in legend for their bitter nature.

However, ‘The Notorious’ is not always abrasive towards his fellow UFC stars and on a number of occasions, he’s been highly respectful of the skills that some of them show inside the octagon. His recent Twitter Q&A was no exception in that regard.

When asked about rising bantamweight star Sean O’Malley, Conor McGregor simply used a single word to describe his striking game in particular, labeling him “slick.”

More intriguing were his thoughts on former UFC lightweight title challenger Michael Chandler, particularly as ‘Iron’ could be seen as a potential future opponent for the Irishman.

When asked what he thought of Chandler, Conor McGregor stated that it was hard not to be impressed with him and that had things been slightly different, he could well be the reigning UFC lightweight champ.

Given that Chandler recently spoke out in the media about McGregor, stating that only “casuals and haters” don’t respect the Irishman as a fighter, and it’s safe to say that there’s no rivalry between these outstanding UFC stars, only plenty of mutual respect.

---

#1. Conor McGregor wants to remain with the UFC for the remainder of his MMA career

Conor McGregor has stated that he wants to remain with the UFC for life

With the constant furore over UFC fighter pay, many fans have wondered whether there will ever be a star who is able to walk away from the promotion and rather than head to a rival like Bellator, might promote themselves in a way similar to boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather.

However, any fans hoping that Conor McGregor might be that fighter will probably want to reconsider their stance following his recent Twitter Q&A.

When asked whether he had any plans to start his own promotion, ‘The Notorious’ quickly shot down any idea of it happening in the near future by stating that he still has two fights remaining on his current deal with the UFC, likely tying him down until the end of 2022 at least.

He then stated that he’d love to remain with the UFC for life, going as far as claiming “I am the UFC!”

While the Irishman left the door open for that to change by ending his tweet with “we shall see,” it feels more likely that he believes his best path to making the most money probably lies within the UFC and not outside of it.

So despite ‘The Notorious ‘actually launching ‘McGregor Sports and Entertainment’ back in 2017 prior to his clash with Mayweather, it seems likely that we’ll be seeing him in the UFC’s octagon for the foreseeable future at least.