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Conor McGregor accused of FAKING toe injury by UFC cult hero in ‘cover-up’ for getting Chandler fight axed
The outrageous claim will no doubt spark a fiery response from The Notorious
CONOR MCGREGOR has sensationally been accused of FAKING his toe injury to get out of his cage comeback against Michael Chandler.
The Notorious was due to make his long-awaited octagon return against his fellow fan favourite in the main event of UFC 303 in June.
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But a broken left pinky toe in one of his final sparring sessions postponed the Return of the Mac.
McGregor, 36, shared photos and x-rays of the injury to put to bed the conspiracy theories surrounding his first-ever withdrawal from an octagon outing.
But former middle and light-heavyweight UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen isn't buying what he's selling, saying on his YouTube channel: "I do not believe that Conor McGregor pulled out due to a toe injury.
"But I also don't believe Conor McGregor had a toe injury.
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"I have to share for you, this is Chael's opinion. I never bought that story.
"And I never suspected anything. I never suspected anything until Conor McGregor took a picture of a toe and put it on social media.
"It was then, and only then, that I go, 'Oh, we got a cover-up going on.'"
Sonnen's scepticism stems from McGregor not showing proof the photos and X-ray of the broken toe he shared belong to him.
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Inside McGregor's Notorious lifestyle
With more sides to his personality than an Octagon, Conor McGregor's rise has been an enthralling watch.
Going from UFC icon to entrepreneur and Hollywood star, the Irishman has transcended the sport he helped bring to the masses.
He has four children with fiancee Dee Devlin and the family enjoy a lavish lifestyle.
McGregor has not fought in UFC since breaking his leg in a trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier in 2021.
That has not stopped him amassing a net worth of over £150m thanks to his Proper No Twelve whiskey and fashion line.
And he is due to return to the Octagon at UFC 303 in an eagerly-awaited headline clash with Michael Chandler.
McGregor also starred alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in the Amazon Prime remake of classic movie Road House, although he is dreading his mum seeing one X-rated scene.
Notorious turned up to the premiere in a £60,000 suit that was outdone by his £460k watch.
The only thing sharper than his fashion sense is his tongue and the Dubliner has several bitter spats under his belt, including with UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.
That row led to one of his biggest controversies in 2018 as he travelled 3,000 miles to confront Khabib in a vicious attack on his bus.
He pleaded guilty to assault after punching a man in a pub in 2018 and had his £150k Bentley seized by police for driving offences four years later.
Joe Rogan lashed out at McGregor in a four-letter outburst and the Irishman has also fired shots at Jake Paul, KSI and Tommy Fury.
Boxing great Floyd Mayweather also has McGregor on his enemy list after the pair clashed in a cross-sport bout in 2017.
Read all of our latest Conor McGregor stories.
He continued: "You would post your face in the picture, you would prove that it was your foot. That was my thought.
"That's not an expert piece of evidence.
Conor McGregor parties with Love Island star in Wayne Lineker's Ibiza club as UFC legend recovers from injury
"I'm just sharing for you that a guy who was broken in half with a compound fracture, who's going to get rushed to the hospital and rushed into surgery but he was such a professional that he calls Joe Rogan over to sit down and he finished an interview because that was the job.
"It's hard for me to believe that he pulled out of a job a month early for a discoloured pinky toe which may or may not be broken and may or may not belong to him.
"I, moreover, had a larger issue with it because, how did it happen?"
He added: "If Conor hurt his toe, how? And who was there? And what were you doing when you stubbed your toe. Did you roll it?
"[Did] you hit something? Did you kick and a guy blocked it? Who was that guy? Who was the guy?
"Because for a guy who has a bad leg and is coming off a compound fracture, the mere thought that you would be throwing that kick without the proper padding on is really tough for me to believe. So I'm just asking a question."
Former two-division champion McGregor hasn't set foot inside the octagon since breaking his left leg in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier nearly three years ago.
It's understood the UFC brass have earmarked December for the Irishman's return, a timeline the Dubliner likes.
The UFC's first simultaneous two-weight world champion told SunSport: "That sounds good to me.
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"That sounds good to me brother."
SunSport has reached out to Conor McGregor's representatives for comment.
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