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Conor McGregor falls out UFC’s official rankings for first time in more than eight years

For the first time since prior to his second octagon appearance, Conor McGregor does not have a number attached to his name in the official UFC rankings.

McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC), a former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion who hasn’t competed since he broke his leg against Dustin Poirier in their July 2021 trilogy fight, has fallen out of the UFC rankings after a run of more than eight years.

He held the No. 14 spot at 155 pounds, but the latest UFC rankings update does not have McGregor anywhere to be found.

It’s the first time McGregor doesn’t have a place in the rankings since after his second promotional appearance in August 2013, when he beat Max Holloway at UFC Fight Night 26. After that win, McGregor broke into the rankings at No. 12 in the featherweight division ahead of his first UFC headliner against Diego Brandao in July 2014.

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The climb continued from there. McGregor worked his way up the list to become the champion at 145 pounds. He then moved to lightweight, where he quickly took the top spot after he dethroned Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 in November 2016.

McGregor only has competed in MMA four times in the more than six years since then, though. He has gone 1-3 with a pair of losses to Poirier and a grudge match defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov. His lone win came at UFC 246 in January 2020 against Donald Cerrone, who was on a two-fight skid and never won again afterward before he retired from MMA.

McGregor does not have a fight currently scheduled, but has claimed he intends to return to the UFC in 2023. He’s not currently enrolled in the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) drug testing program, however, and most likely must complete six months of testing before he will be cleared to step in the cage.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie