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via Imago

via Imago

Dana White had promised that the upcoming UFC 306 card at the iconic sphere in Las Vegas would be “the sickest live event in combat sports” history. Opened in September 2023, The Sphere is, without a doubt, the most unique and eye-catching live event venue in the world.

Boasting a wraparound 16K LED display, along with its wave field synthesis technology and 4D effects, The Sphere promises to give audiences the most immersive live event experience on earth. This announcement, as well as the tall claims that White has made, may mean Conor McGregor is one step closer to fighting at The Sphere, as he had long desired.

Dana White claims to get ‘Mac’ one step closer to fighting at The Sphere.

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Earlier this year, with a date for his upcoming comeback still uncertain, Conor McGregor, in a tweet, had asked to fight at UFC 303 to cap off the UFC’s marquee International Fight Week on June 29, followed by a trilogy with Nate Diaz at UFC 306 in The Sphere.

And Dana White, speaking in a recent press conference about the upcoming UFC event at the Sphere, made some bold promises to the reporters: “This is gonna be the sickest live event in combat sports that anybody has ever seen, and it will never be done again.”

The UFC CEO, however, made clear that “this will be one and done just because I wanna do it,” as people had repeatedly dissuaded them from doing it, and he wanted to prove them wrong since “that’s the kind of stuff I love.” The Power Slap founder also admitted that the Sphere card has required significant investment from the promotion, which is why “we’ve already spent a sh*tload of money on this thing.”

And in characteristic Dana White fashion, he made the bombastic pronouncement that “nobody will ever be able to pull this off again because nobody would spend money to do… what I’m doing there right now… I’m telling you this is gonna be so bada**.” 

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While McGregor certainly would be scrambling to try and get a piece of UFC 306, a lot would depend on his performance in his upcoming comeback bout. Scheduled to face Michael Chandler in a welterweight bout at UFC 303, ‘Mac’s performance will determine whether or not the fans take the Irishman seriously as a fighter and are even interested in watching Mac fight.

Chandler vows to make fans lose interest in McGregor

Conor McGregor has been out for the past three years, recovering from a horrific broken leg he suffered against Dustin Poirier at their UFC 264 trilogy bout. To make matters worse, he has lost three of his last four fights and has not looked the same since losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov in humiliating fashion at their record-breaking UFC 229 clash seven years ago.

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This is why not many are expecting McGregor to do very well against Chandler, as there are serious questions about whether the Irishman can even compete with the top guys in the stacked lightweight division anymore.

Not to mention, Michael Chandler has promised that he will beat the former two-division concurrent champion so convincingly and embarrassingly that the fans will no longer be interested in watching McGregor fight. This is why it is crucial that McGregor win, or at least lose valiantly, in his upcoming bout against Chandler. Otherwise, not many fans may have the taste to watch who they consider a washed-up fighter with much excitement. Not to mention the Dubliner, if he takes too much damage in his comeback bout, may not even be healthy enough to fight at The Sphere in September.