Conor McGregor returns to the Octagon this weekend to mark the climax of an intense period of scrutiny of the UFC megastar.

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The 32-year-old was defeated by Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018 and has only fought once since.

His first-round victory over Donald Cerrone in January 2020 was a brief encounter against a lesser opponent, and while he carried out his duty impeccably, it was hardly a lengthy comeback for McGregor.

Khabib's retirement following his win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 has taken a rematch off the table, but we all know how much a UFC fighter's retirement is worth these days.

Check our our guide to McGregor's next fight, his retirement status and, yes, even those Jake Paul shenanigans.

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When is Conor McGregor's next fight in UFC?

McGregor's next fight will come at UFC 257 against Dustin Poirer on Saturday 23rd January 2021.

The pair first fought in September 2014 with McGregor coming out on top with a first round TKO victory.

The rematch will pit both fighters against each other in a Lightweight contest. Both have been downed twice since they met.

McGregor and Poirer were both toppled by Nurmagomedov within the space of a year, while McGregor was also halted by Nate Diaz, Poirer by Michael Johnson.

Is Conor McGregor retired?

Good question. McGregor has officially retired three times in the last four years, and when he steps into the Octagon with Poirer for a second time, it will be the third time he has come out of retirement.

He called it a day as early as April 2016 ahead of his rematch with Nate Diaz but was swayed by UFC boss Dana White to engage in the contest, and he truly put on a show. He was a retired man for a grand total of 46 days.

The second retirement came along in March 2019, months after being defeated by Khabib Nurmagomedov. He added nine days of retirement to his rolling tally before tweeting his intention to return to the Octagon.

His third and most recent retirement arrived in June 2020 in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic but the recent confirmation of his showdown with Poirer at UFC 257 will cap off a third comeback with the likelihood of many more to come in future.

Will Conor McGregor fight Jake Paul?

It's the question that should be on precisely nobody's lips, but Jake Paul just had to go there, didn't he?

Fresh from boxing victories over fellow YouTuber AnEsonGib and former basketball player Nate Robinson (yes, we're rolling our eyes too), Paul thought it was a good idea to call out McGregor following his... ahem, glorious triumph.

Paul has also launched taunts at McGregor and water-bombed his friend Dillon Danis from the back of a car.

He posted: "My team sent you a $50 million dollar offer this morning – 50 million dollars cash, proof of funds, the biggest fight offer you've ever been offered.

"But, you're scared to fight me, Conor!! You're ducking me because you don't wanna lose to a f***ing YouTuber. You're 0-1 as a boxer. I'm 2-0 as a boxer."

In answer to the question nobody wants to ask, Conor McGregor is not yet signed up to fight Jake Paul.

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