Getty Conor McGregor sits on the mat after injuring his ankle at UFC 264.
UFC superstar Conor McGregor hopes to fight Dustin Poirier again for the fourth time after “Notorious” heals from the devastating leg injury he suffered at UFC 264, but another former UFC champion’s recent setback during his recovery for a similar injury indicates McGregor’s next fight might actually be against his own body.
Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman suffered a horrific leg break in his last fight, and it required surgery. Weidman broke his leg against Uriah Hall at UFC 261 in April. While Weidman previously suggested his rehabilitation efforts had been going smoothly, the most recent update revealed he’ll be going back under the knife soon.
“I’m actually getting another surgery – I just found out,” Weidman told “MMA Today” on SiriusXM per MMA Junkie. “I’m getting another surgery, most likely on Aug. 11. They’re going to have to plate the fibula bone because it’s considered a non-union, so the bones aren’t healing the way it’s supposed to, which kind of sucks.”
So the caution for McGregor is that bones don’t always heal the way doctors intend, and McGregor could be on his way to suffering a similar setback.
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McGregor Following in Weidman’s Footsteps
McGregor already had surgery to repair his broken bone.
He’s been seen in his latest Instagram photos sporting a cast on his leg, and his spirits seem high right now as far as all that goes.
McGregor posted, “Life is not about what happens to us. But how we handle what happens to us! Let’s go team, God Bless…Still grinding!”
According to Weidman, who is a little farther along than McGregor on the road back to climbing inside the UFC’s Octagon again, that kind of positive mindset is something that will be important for McGregor on his recovery journey.
“At the end of the day, I guess my mindset is, I’m just a positive person to begin with,” Weidman said. “Not that I don’t have moments of negativity and laziness and lack of motivation, but I’m usually a glass half full type of person. I think that helps. If I ever feel bad for myself, it’s very easy to look at someone else who has it worse and realize you have nothing to complain about it and you shouldn’t feel sorry for yourself.”
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Will McGregor Ever Fight in UFC Again?
Still, Weidman hasn’t been going back and forth between the positive and negative poles in the same way Mcgregor has as of late.
At least, Weidman hasn’t been doing it publically.
Sure, some of the Irishman’s posts on social media seem on the right track as far as keeping positivity flowing through his mind and body, but others, such as his recently deleted tweets about the late father of Khabib Nurmagomedov and other matters, seem to paint a widely different picture.
Regardless, healing from a broken bone takes time, and sometimes it takes way more time than one might hope. No matter how each man might feel on the inside right now, Weidman’s most recent setback is just another example of why neither fighter is a sure-thing to get back to fighting form again.
It’s a long road back, and unforeseen setbacks can and do sometimes happen.
Both McGregor and Weidman hope to return to UFC action, but only time will tell if they actually do.
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