Conor McGregor responds to Diego Sanchez’s request for retirement matchup

Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor has responded to a recent callout from The Ultimate Fighter season 1 winner Diego Sanchez.

Sanchez, who takes on Jake Matthews on the UFC 253 undercard this Saturday, called for a fight with McGregor earlier this week, identifying it as the ideal matchup for the final fight of his legendary career.

“My goals in these last four fights in the UFC is to finish strong, to finish healthy,” Sanchez said (via Essentially Sports). “I shoot for the moon man, I shoot for the moon in everything I do. I’m looking for legend fights. I’m not looking past Jake Matthews, but I’m looking for some legend fights.

“Nick Diaz is coming back,” Sanchez added. “There’s some other names, Nate Diaz, there’s a lot of big fights that would be appealing for the fans. I said I shoot for the moon, Conor McGregor is the number four fight. I envision myself dominating these next three fights and finishing my career with a fight with Conor McGregor. That’s my dream, that’s my vision. As I build my legacy and his does what his does, I’ll be waiting if he wants to do it at the end of the road.”

On Friday, McGregor responded to this suggestion from Sanchez. In a somewhat surprising twist, McGregor agreed to fight Sanchez, and actually revealed that he asked UFC President Dana White for the matchup after he defeated Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone earlier this year.

To Diego Sanchez…
I seen your recent comments about your final bout and I am in!
After you fought Pereira, I had requested for myself and you to compete in Dublin. This was back in February when I was working on opposition for my season, pre covid.
Good luck this weekend! pic.twitter.com/Y0hf6Zr7XF

— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) September 25, 2020

“To Diego Sanchez,” McGregor wrote on Twitter. “I seen your recent comments about your final bout and I am in! After you fought [Michel] Pereira, I had requested for myself and you to compete in Dublin. This was back in February when I was working on opposition for my season, pre-COVID. Good luck this weekend!”

In his Tweet, McGregor included screenshots from his conversations with White, who was opposed to the idea of a fight with Sanchez, suggesting he’d “lose his promoter’s license” if he booked it.

Conor McGregor announced his retirement in June, but evidently, that retirement is unlikely to stick.

Would you be interested in seeing him fight Diego Sanchez next year?