Conor McGregor Speaks For First Time After UFC 303 Pullout - But Will Fans Understand?

Conor McGregor has broken his silence.

The former UFC Champion finally said something after his upcoming UFC 303 fight in which McGregor was supposed to make his long awaited return to the Octagon after three years. But his fight against opponent Michael Chandler was postponed this past Thursday due to what we now know was an injury sustained by Conor.

"Very tough to be ruled out of my scheduled return bout. I picked up an injury prior to the press conference that required more time to heal than was available to me. The decision to postpone the fight was not made lightly, but one made in consultation with my doctors, the UFC, and my team. My fans and opponents deserve me at my best for this fight, and we will get there!" the soon-to-be 36-years-old once dominant fighter wrote.

EVEN MCGREGOR FANS AREN'T PLEASED

To say this has been heartbreaking for both Conor McGregor and his legion of fans is an understatement.

How do I know? Because I am one of them.

Yes, it's completely understandable that if Conor was hurt that the fight needed to be called - and thankfully it was. But it's HOW long it took that is what some McGregor and UFC fans are really upset about.

I've been covering the UFC for years and interviewed Conor on his way up as well as saw him fight multiple times. Heck, I even went viral when I asked him a question during the leadup to the massive McGregor vs Khabib fight! 

CONOR MCGREGOR FIGHT IS OFF

Just two weeks ago, the sports world erupted into chaos as there was so much speculation that the worst was coming after the UFC 303 press conference between both fighters was postponed AT MIDNIGHT the day of. Why would that ever happen - just hours after UFC President Dana White said he was flying overseas to do a press conference?

More importantly - when was Conor injured training? 

We still don't know - which makes it even more frustrating for fans that literally lost thousands of dollars buying airfare, hotels and other expenses for not only the UFC 303 press conference but also the fight night itself. You can see some of them here:

Once again, there's no shame in Conor McGregor being injured - and the UFC was right to pull the fight rather than have him at a lower capacity. There's simply too much buzz (and more than a $20 million venue Gate) on the line. 

Having said that, we wish Conor the best… let's just hope he can fight again soon because the McGregor fans and the UFC / MMA fans would love to see it. 

UFC 303, by the way, will still happen - with the main event fight for the Light Heavyweight Championship between Alex Pereira and Jiří Procházka on June 29!