Peter Quarry is confident Conor McGregor will return in September.
The Bellator lightweight fighter is a longtime teammate of McGregor, and McGregor was supposed to make his long-awaited return at UFC 303 on June 29.
“The Notorious” had been sidelined for three years with an injury and seemed to be in top form until Dana White called off his fight with Michael Chandler.
UFC officials blamed the postponement on an illness McGregor is suffering from, but it is unclear at this point what the issue is.
Queary knows exactly what's preventing the UFC legend from making a comeback, and while he doesn't want to give away any secrets, the 39-year-old revealed the new planned date for McGregor vs Chandler and hinted that it's not serious.
When asked if he had inside information about the injury that marred UFC 303, Queally told talkSPORT MMA: “I do and I'm keeping it a secret.”
“They seem to be looking to play that game in September.
“Probably. That's what I heard.”
“If they can make it happen, that's what we can expect.”
Querrey, who has travelled the world for years to watch his friend fight, was disappointed in more ways than one that McGregor's failed comeback attempt fell through.
He added: “It was very disappointing.
“Obviously, I’m his friend and I wouldn’t want to see a friend or someone close to me go through something bad.
“As a fan, I was looking forward to going out and enjoying the week. [Las] I’ll go see the fight in Las Vegas and experience everything Conor does.
“There's no place like it on Earth. If you haven't been there yet, save up your money and go and experience it for yourself.”
“It's really amazing. I feel lucky to have been able to take part in all of it.”
“That's what I was looking forward to and that's what I'm most disappointed about. I just wanted to get back in and experience it again.”
McGregor has one win since 2016 and hasn't fought since July 2021 when he broke his leg during a three-fight series against Dustin Poirier.
The 35-year-old has claimed the title of sport's greatest ever comeback, but his age, injury problems and vast fortune have some questioning whether he can return to the top.
Queally sees no reason why McGregor can't become world champion again.
'The Showstopper' claims that if McGregor returns to anything close to peak form, he'll easily defeat Chandler when they meet in the Octagon.
“There's no reason why he can't get back to that level,” Querrey concluded.
“If he can get back to that form, this fight is a piece of cake. If you had a time machine and took McGregor back to 2016, at the height of his power, and put him against someone of Chandler's calibre, he'd win in the first round.”
“If he can get that form back, I think we're going to see something special.”
Querrey, known for his iconic “zombie” walkout, will be in the commentary booth when Bellator returns for a massive show at Dublin's 3Arena on Saturday night.
McGregor has a habit of showing up whenever his biggest UFC rival comes to his hometown, and with camp now on hold, he may make another appearance.
