Conor McGregor tested more than any other fighter in 2024 so far

Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor is trying to make his return to the Octagon. One of the hold-ups to his return in 2023 was the UFC's partnership with USADA, the anti-doping agency. Now that the UFC is working with a new testing company, it's thought he'd be cleared to fight soon.

According to the new UFC Anti-doping site, McGregor has been tested five times this year, nearly double anyone else on the list. Several fighters have been tested twice. Themba Gorimbo, former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland, and former title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva have all been tested three times. But none have been tested four or five times, outside of McGregor.

McGregor was seen bulking up while recovering from a 2021 leg break and preparing for his role as Knox, the bad guy in the new Road House movie. Many fans and media had wondered if the UFC had parted ways with USADA to protect McGregor from their rules, a fact that doesn't seem to phase his potential next opponent, Michael Chandler.

Conor McGregor was tested more than any current or former UFC champion in 2024

“Not really,” Chandler told TMZ Sports. “You know I mean everybody is on their own journey and everybody has their different ways that they would do things. Obviously, I’ve always looked at [PEDs} as a crutch. If there was something that somebody would be able to take while they weren’t being drug tested, compared to when they were, to me that would be nothing but a mental hurdle to get over.”

One thing is for sure, the new program is certianly testing McGregor. The results are another matter. Under the old program, if a fighter tested positive the public would not be notified until the case was researched and punishment was administered. So there's no telling what could be happening behind the scenes that we know nothing about.