Fans fear Conor McGregor will 'NEVER fight again' after pulling out of UFC 303 showdown with Michael Chandler... as Dustin Poirier brutally mocks his bitter rival

Fresh concerns have been raised by fans over Conor McGregor's MMA future after he pulled out of his UFC 303 fight with Michael Chandler on Friday morning.

Doubts emerged over the fight just under two weeks ago when a scheduled press conference in Dublin was cancelled just hours before it was due to take place, and McGregor appeared to hint that he was on the verge of postponing the contest when he posted an old clip of himself discussing injuries on Instagram on Thursday before deleting it.

Official confirmation came through in the early hours of Friday morning in the UK that the bout is off due to the Irishman being injured, with Dana White announcing that a light-heavyweight world title rematch between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka will now top the bill at UFC 303.

MMA journalist Ariel Helwani has reported that the UFC are looking to reschedule the fight for August or September, but some fans now have serious reservations over whether McGregor will ever be seen in the Octagon again after a three-year layoff.

'I’m convinced McGregor will never fight again. So disappointing man,' one fan posted on X.

Another X user suggested time is ticking on McGregor's career as they added: 'If Conor McGregor isn’t booked again immediately in the aftermath of UFC 303 I believe he will never fight in the UFC again.'

McGregor has only fought four times in the UFC since November 2016, winning just one of those fights.

His last fight saw him suffer a gruesome leg break in July 2021 against Dustin Poirier, forcing the referee to call a halt to proceedings at the end of the first round.

Since then, the former two-weight champion has always insisted that he will return, but his comeback was delayed last year as he needed to re-enter the USADA drug-testing pool.

After agreeing to this, McGregor announced at the end of 2023 that he would be taking on Chandler on June 29 to mark International Fight Week, and that date was later confirmed by the UFC.

But his clash with Chandler has been pushed back again, and some supporters are convinced he will no longer face the American or anyone else before calling time on his career.

One fan wrote on X: 'McGregor is absolutely finished. Just retire at this point.'

This message was reiterated by another fan, who claimed: 'McGregor is finished'.

Despite not being seen inside the Octagon, McGregor remains a popular figure on social media, and he poked fun at his old rival Poirier this week after the pay-per-view numbers for his fight with lightweight champion Islam Makhachev earlier this month were released to the public.

'500k PPV buys 302 done. A nothing burger,' McGregor wrote.

Poirier responded just minutes after McGregor's pull-out was confirmed by brutally mocking his bitter rival as he posted on X: '#NothingBurger'.

This is the first time that McGregor has ever postponed a fight, and he has been known to proceed with bouts even when carrying an injury beforehand.

But he is set to turn 36 next month, and after another setback to his comeback plans, there are major doubts over whether he can ever be the force he once was.