Michael Chandler is eager to fight Conor McGregor and move past their longstanding UFC rivalry for good.
Chandler and McGregor have been linked to a UFC fight for several years now, and even served as opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter in anticipation of their meeting in the Octagon. However, when they were finally booked to fight at UFC 303 in June, McGregor was forced off the card with a toe injury, and the status of the bout was once again cast in uncertainty.
Now, after waiting for years for McGregor to heal up and get back in the Octagon, Chandler seems eager to move onto the next chapter of his career.
Speaking on Beat the Heat, he expressed his eagerness to get fight McGregor as soon as possible and put the rivalry behind him.
"I’m never going to play the victim,” Chandler said. “I’ve got wife and two kids, I’ve got businesses, I’ve got all this stuff. It’s more just, with all do respect, I’m ready to put you behind me. I’m ready to put you flat on your back, in the middle of an Octagon, wherever it is — hopefully Las Vegas — and I can walk out of that Octagon and never have to think about you again."
Conor McGregor, 36, has not fought since he suffered a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021, which left him with a badly broken leg. It was his second loss to Poirier in a row after a knockout loss in January that same year.
In his next most recent fight, way back in 2020, the former two-division champion stopped Donald Cerrone in the first round. That was preceded by a failed title bid opposite Khabib Nurmagomedov, a fight he lost by submission.
Despite his long absence, McGregor remains the biggest star in MMA history — and the biggest payday available for those who fight him.
That explains why Chandler has been willing to wait so long for their fight to materialize. The former Bellator lightweight champ has not fought since he was submitted by Poirier in 2022. That was preceded by a knockout win over Tony Ferguson earlier the same year.
