Conor McGregor has been warned that his status as the ‘cash cow’ in the sport could be under threat by Israel Adesanya.
That is the view of Chael Sonnen. McGregor has been out of the octagon since his defeat to Dustin Porier in 2021 when he broke his leg.
While McGregor has kept himself relevant as a coach on ‘TUF’ 31 opposite Michael Chandler, the Irishman’s future in the sport is unclear.
He had been touted to fight Chandler this year, however, his failure to enroll into USADA so far has put that prospect under threat.
In the meantime, Adesanya captured the imagination of MMA fans with his speculator second-round KO win over Alex Pereira to become the middleweight champion.
And now the champion could be in line to have another historic fight with Dricus Du Plessis.
The latter made a stunning statement in the UFC 290 with his second-round stoppage of Robert Whittaker, which set up a face-off with Adesanya.
Du Plessis previously targeted Adesanya and Francis Ngannou, vowing to be the first African to win a championship belt.
Adesanya responded to this challenge by promising to defeat him, which could now happen.
“I’m looking at Adesanya here, man — there were some things that happened Saturday that I’ve never seen in television before, not just I’ve never seen in sport.
“I thought Adesanya was the star of the show. I don’t think that program [UFC 290], of which I really enjoyed, I don’t think that program is the same in my mind or in history without Adesanya’s appearance, and he didn’t throw a single punch.
“I think that is fascinating….Conor McGregor. Izzy is coming for his spot. Izzy is coming for top draw in this sport — and he’s not that far away,” Sonnen stated
In truth, McGregor has not been the same since his loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
While those bouts were lucrative, they have ultimately had a negative impact on McGregor’s legacy. And there is no getting away from that.
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