Conor McGregor's retirement rumours sparked quite the global furore on Tuesday evening.
Retired or not, we now know the 27-year-old UFC featherweight champion will not be headlining UFC 200 as scheduled, with the organisation confirming he has been pulled from the card altogether.
BREAKING NEWS: UFC pulls @TheNotoriousMMA from #UFC200. @danawhite on @SportsCenter now.
— UFC (@ufc) April 19, 2016
After this release, UFC president Dana White appeared on ESPN's SportsCenter, where he revealed that 'The Notorious' has been removed from the marquee card because he refused to attend his various promotional obligations this week in Las Vegas, opting instead to remain in training camp in Iceland.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIK1RN7ZH5g&feature=youtu.be
Obviously we still have a good relationship with Conor,
White said.
I respect Conor as a fighter and I like him as a person. But you can't decide not to show up to these things. You have to do it.
Conor didn't want to come to Las Vegas and be part of any promotional training. He's in Iceland training.
He felt leaving right now would hurt his training. But every other fighter on the card is coming.
It doesn't make you exempt. We spend a lot of money on this stuff.
The UFC's statement can be viewed as quite the power play when you consider its wording: "The UFC has pulled Conor McGregor...", i.e. 'we're still in charge, here'.
It's long been suggested that the Crumlin man's relationship with the organisation has become strained, but White and co. have obviously made the call to put the foot down.
The UFC will now look for a replacement opponent for Nate Diaz, although it's not clear if Diaz will remain the headliner on a stacked card.
White added that only McGregor knows if he is indeed retiring or not, although judging by this Instagram post by Peter Queally, it seems 'retirement' will remain the party line for now - even if the featherweight champion's intentions have just become a whole lot more transparent.
Something tells us there will be more to follow...
H/T: ESPN
