CONOR McGREGOR was forced out of UFC 303 after suffering a toe injury – but it was not his first rodeo.
McGregor was due to make his return on June 29 after three years out to face Michael Chandler.
But for the first time in his UFC career, the Irishman withdrew having broken his toe just weeks out from the bout.
McGregor released pictures of his severely swollen foot and insisted he would not fight while injured.
The former two-weight UFC champion had a reputation of fighting through injury during his career.
He infamously claimed his foot had swollen to the size of a “balloon” by the time he faced arch rival Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018.
And behind-the-scenes footage in his Netflix docuseries revealed the exact moment he suffered the toe injury.
He astonishingly had his doctor dislocate the injured toe before painfully resetting it.
McGregor went on to lose by fourth-round submission to Nurmagomedov and later said his performance was hampered due to injury.
He has not fought since July 2021 when he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier, 35.
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McGregor, 35, spoke out for the first time about his injury after attending Bellator Dublin to explain his decision to withdraw.
He said: “I’m still here rocking away.
“I had a little lapse in concentration, so I had to reschedule the belt, so I’m a little upset about that.
“But it’s keeping me dialed in. It’s keeping me focused. The job is not done.
“So that’s not bad for someone like me. I’m onwards towards the new date and take my lessons learned. It was a lapse in concentration.
“If I was any one of these other little bums that can’t move, that have no footwork, that don’t rely on their skills, then I would be OK.
“And I’ve done it before. I’ve made the walk a multitude of times in those circumstances and given these bums an advantage over me that they don’t even deserve.
“So now I’m dialling it in, I’m getting this training camp correct, I’m walking in there 100 per cent Conor McGregor, injury free.
“Perfection is on the menu with me, and that’s it.”
