Michael Chandler has stated that he believes he beats Charles Oliveira “nine times out of ten” despite having lost to him twice now.
Chandler did everything he could to defeat Oliveira at UFC 309 but fell short. The fans were ecstatic to witness a truly thrilling battle, and ‘Iron’ received a lot of praise for his grittiness and heart. However, when the judges’ scorecards were read, it was a unanimous decision victory for ‘Do Bronx’, and Chandler would go home with another loss.
Speaking to MMA journalist Ariel Helwani, ‘Iron’ opened up about his feelings concerning the skill gap between him and his Brazilian rival, saying: “I believe I beat Charles Oliveira nine times out of 10. Obviously I’ve lost twice to him now. Two out of two. I have 100% loss rate to Charles Oliveira. So I understand why people might tsk at that, roll their eyes at that.”
This would indeed turn out to be a statement that many would scoff at, as well as claims from Chandler that he did not hit Oliveira in the back of the head (which he made later in the interview with Helwani). This would leave a crafty opening for a former UFC champion to roast Michael Chandler, and it would not be an opportunity squandered.
Michael Chandler Gets Roasted by Rafael Dos Anjos over comments about UFC 309 fight
Replying to the “I’d beat Oliveira nine times out of ten” and “I didn’t hit him in the back of the head, it was the ear” talk, RDA took advantage of a perfect moment and cracked a funny on Instagram, saying: “You hit him on the back of the head nine times out of ten.”
To add insult to injury, Chandler is now a bleak 1-4 in his last five fights. While a genuinely exciting fighter to watch, nobody remains on the UFC roster for too long after going on too bad of a skid. Especially the older and higher-paid fighters, those seemingly make the most sense to let go.
So, it’s only a matter of time until we find out how much leeway Michael Chandler will be allotted in terms of losing fights. The UFC can be more lenient depending on the fighter and how easy they are to work with, and Chandler has proven himself to be a rather apt company man so far. But they say good times never last, and nobody can fight forever.
Do you think Michael Chandler should be worried about getting cut by the UFC?