Notorious hasn’t fought since July 2021 after breaking his leg against PoirierCredit: getty

McGregor has been out of action since July 2021 when he suffered a serious leg break in a first round defeat to Dustin Poirier, leading to an extended spell on the sidelines.

On October 8, McGregor re-entered the UFC’s drug-testing pool with USADA, meaning that he would be able to fight again from April 8 next year after recently submitting his first test since returning to the program.

However, according to longtime coach Kavanagh of SBG Ireland, that date has been pushed back.

Speaking on The MMA Hour, he said: “We were hoping for April. That was the hope.

“That was what we were told. And now it seems to be the summertime.

“I don’t know [why]. That’s literally what we were having a bit of a back and forward [about] today.”

Asked about what impact the delay could have no his mental health, Kavanagh said: “Well, I was [worried about his mental health] too, I’m not going to lie. But hearing him today, he’s out there finding this great group of training partners — at least he’s doing that.

“Hey, it’s not quite the same as getting in to compete in front of a large crowd, but at least he’s getting training in, and that’s so important. We heard Volk talk about that, ‘Keep me busy,’ and all that. So I love to hear that he’s training hard with these guys.

McGregor is desperate to get back into the thick of it but may have to wait until next summerCredit: Getty

“But look, and this is what I was saying to him as well — yeah, OK, it’s a knock back if we’re hearing it was April but now it’s July, but it’s not the end of the world.

“It is an extra couple of months. It’s not great. But hey, you’re enjoying your training at the moment. Let’s just keep that going.

“But the sport, you are around for such a short time as compared to — well, I’m not going to try to make a comparison to other sports or whatever, but like our careers, we can do this for decades. For fighters, is a short time.”