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MMA

20th Jan 2015

Conor McGregor title defence could be at Croke Park, claims the stadium director

Peter McKenna confirms discussions with UFC

Kevin McGillicuddy

Stop teasing us already

Just when we thought we were out they bring us right back in again.

We had come to terms that Conor McGregor wasn’t going to be taking on Jose Aldo after all in Dublin in May after the comments by Dana White on Monday that the featherweight title fight will be in Las Vegas.

However, this afternoon it seems that we may still get to see ‘The Notorious’ fight in Dublin after all with comments from the man who runs Croke Park, Peter McKenna.

The stadium director has revealed that the GAA and the UFC have held discussions about hosting a possible title defence if the Dubliner were to overcome Aldo in Vegas in May.

Speaking to the Irish Daily Star McKenna has raised the prospect of a fight on home soil before the end of the year:

We are hoping for Conor to win and then he’d take a defence to Croke Park. We’ve had discussions to that effect with the UFC.

The statement seems to go against what White said at the weekend,when he suggested that Croke Park would be unsuitable due to a curfew at the stadium as well as our inclement weather scuppering any chance of getting an Octagon down Jones’ Road.

But comments from the UFC’s director of Brand Communications and Events Dave Allen could mean that wouldn’t matter if the Dublin event was managed right and would potentially open up the UFC to a whole new audience in Europe:

‘If there are curfews, that’s OK. Not all events have to hit US timelines. The way we think is, how can we get the most people to watch our events? We have fans all around the world.

Our heads are spinning at the thought of it and if we can have a Christmas wish early this has to be it.

H/t to The Irish Daily Star