Dana White: Conor McGregor not back on UFC 200 card

The will-he-won’t-he saga surrounding Conor McGregor’s appearance on the UFC 200 card in Las Vegas on July 9th took another few twists and turns on Monday between the principal stakeholders.

McGregor tweeted that his fight against Nate Diaz was back on and praised UFC boss Dana White for “getting this one done for the fans”.

It was news to White, who told the TMZ website that the McGregor-Diaz was still off.

White said: “It’s not true. We haven’t talked to Conor or his manager since the press conference. I don’t know why he would tweet that.”

He added: “I can say the fight is off or how many more press conferences I can have saying the fight is off for people to believe it’s off.”

In what has become a complex saga, the 27-year-old McGregor initially tweeted last Tuesday that he had decided to “retire young” and was then sensationally pulled from his rematch with Diaz after a row over promotional duties.

However, in a lengthy statement issued last Thursday, McGregor said he remained willing to face Diaz in Las Vegas but will not be going on a promotional tour.

Writing on Facebook, the 27-year-old said: “I am just trying to do my job and fight here. I am paid to fight. I am not yet paid to promote.

“I have become lost in the game of promotion and forgot about the art of fighting.

“There comes a time when you need to stop handing out flyers and get back to the damn shop.

“Fifty world tours, 200 press conferences, 1 million interviews, 2 million photo shoots, and at the end of it all I’m left looking down the barrel of a lens, staring defeat in the face, thinking of nothing but my incorrect fight preparation.

“And the many distractions that led to this. Nothing else was going through my mind.”