Tag: Michael Chandler

Michael Chandler Lays Down Ultimatum To Conor McGregor Regarding UFC Fight In 2025

Michael Chandler has spent a long time waiting for the Octagon return of Conor McGregor but it appears that now, he has drawn a line in the sand. “Iron” Mike has already had to go past the deadline that he set for “The Notorious” once before which led to him returning at UFC 309. When […]

Michael Chandler has spent a long time waiting for the Octagon return of Conor McGregor but it appears that now, he has drawn a line in the sand. “Iron” Mike has already had to go past the deadline that he set for “The Notorious” once before which led to him returning at UFC 309.

When the UFC offered him the opportunity to rematch Charles Oliveira at Madison Square Garden last month, he knew that it was the right time to put the McGregor fight on hold and step back inside the Octagon. The fight didn’t go his way but that doesn’t seem to have impacted whether he will get the opportunity to face off with the Irishman if he ever does come back.

McGregor recently claimed, after being found guilty of sexual assault in a civil case, that he’s currently working on a boxing match against Logan Paul and will turn his attention towards the UFC after that. With the former champ-champ being impossible to predict or decipher at times, Chandler is smartly making his own calls so that his career won’t be dictated by a potential opponent.

Speaking in a recent interview with Lucky Block, he revealed that he has a new timeframe in mind for the long awaited clash with McGregor. Chandler was happy to have some time off before he came back to face Oliveira but after returning in November, he wants to get back to regular activity with or without his long awaited dance partner.

“If Conor doesn’t come back in the first half of 2025, I will be fighting someone else,” Chandler said. “There are other fights I’m interested in. I didn’t fight for two years but that wasn’t all waiting, I wanted to take some time and give my body a break after my first five fights in the promotion which included a title fight and fight of the nights and the fight of the year.

“My body needed a little bit of a break and I was happy to. Part of me was hanging onto this Conor thing but also kind of a little bit of gamesmanship, enjoying the time off, letting my body heal up a little bit,” Chandler continued. ” It was all supposed to come to fruition with a really great performance, getting my hand raised against Charles, becoming the number one contender, fighting for the title. Obviously that didn’t work out, but we continue to press on no matter what.”

Former UFC Champ Dismantles Michael Chandler’s UFC 309 Remarks with a Savage Retort

Michael Chandler UFC 309 Rafael Dos Anjos Charles OliveiraMichael Chandler has stated that he believes he beats Charles Oliveira “nine times out of ten” despite having lost…

Michael Chandler UFC 309 Rafael Dos Anjos Charles Oliveira

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.”

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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?

‘The Math Ain’t Mathing’ – Fans React As Michael Chandler Claims He’d Beat Charles Oliveira ‘9 Times Out Of 10’

UFC lightweight Michael Chandler is 0-2 against Charles Oliveira but believes he’d go 9-1 against him. Work that one out. Chandler is currently weeks on from his second defeat at the hands of Oliveira, having been comfortably outpointed across five rounds by “do Bronx” in the co-main event of UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. […]

UFC lightweight Michael Chandler is 0-2 against Charles Oliveira but believes he’d go 9-1 against him. Work that one out.

Chandler is currently weeks on from his second defeat at the hands of Oliveira, having been comfortably outpointed across five rounds by “do Bronx” in the co-main event of UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden.

The result was a more emphatic setback for “Iron” than his previous loss to Oliveira, which saw his strong start and near-finish in round one rendered null by a mighty comeback from the Brazilian at UFC 262 in May 2021.

Appearing on Wednesday’s episode of The Ariel Helwani Show on Uncrowned, Chandler reflected on his losing performance in New York City earlier this month.

The former Bellator champion was honest about his display, admitting it fell way short of what he had anticipated and rating it just two out of 10. But Chandler had a more eyebrow-raising figure when it came to a different topic…

“I’m not happy with my performance. I would give myself a two out of 10,” he said. “I cannot overstate how horrible of a performance this was compared to what my vision was for what I’m capable of. I believe I beat Charles Oliveira 9 times out of 10.”

Be it the math that went into that equation or Chandler’s confidence given his losing 2-4 record since joining the promotion, it’s safe to say the MMA fanbase had a field day reacting to the 38-year-old’s remarks.

Michael Chandler Can’t Math, Claims He’d Beat Charles Oliveira ‘Nine Times Out of 10’

Michael Chandler Can't Math, Claims He'd Beat Charles Oliveira 'Nine Times Out of 10'There’s a reason Michael Chandler fights inside a cage instead of teaching grade school math. After sitting on the…

Michael Chandler Can't Math, Claims He'd Beat Charles Oliveira 'Nine Times Out of 10'

There’s a reason Michael Chandler fights inside a cage instead of teaching grade school math.

After sitting on the sidelines for two years trying to coax Conor McGregor into a fight that was never going to happen, the former Bellator titleholder returned to the Octagon at UFC 309 for a rematch with former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira.

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The first time around, Chandler damn near finished ‘Do Bronx’ in the opening round. This time, Chandler could barely stay on his feet, getting outwrestled by a jiu-jitsu guy for the majority of their five-round affair in Madison Square Garden.

Looking back on his lackluster showing during a recent interview, Chandler made a rather confusing and downright delusional statement.

“I’m not happy with my performance. I would give myself a 2 out of 10,” Chandler said on The Ariel Helwani Show. “I cannot overstate how horrible of a performance this was or the set of circumstances it was after that first round compared to what my vision was for what I’m capable of. I believe I beat Charles Oliveira nine times out of ten. Obviously, I’ve lost to him twice now – two outta two. I have a 100% loss rate to Charles Oliveira, so I understand why people might roll their eyes at that” (h/t MMA Mania).

Somebody tell Mr. Chandler that his math ain’t mathing.

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Michael Chandler still holding out hope for McGregor Fight

Two weeks removed from fight night, Chandler is still in recovery mode after revealing that he was peeing blood and showed off some gnarly swelling to his left leg.

Chandler is still holding out hope that he’ll get his red panty night against Conor McGregor one day, but the chances of that happening aren’t looking too good these days.

Michael Chandler Unhappy With ‘Narrative’ Painted By UFC 309 Commentary Team: ‘I’m An Honest Guy’ 

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler believes his “integrity” was wrongly called into question in the aftermath of his defeat earlier this month. Two years on from a submission loss to Dustin Poirier at Madison Square Garden, Chandler made his long-awaited return inside the same venue on Nov. 16, running it back with Charles Oliveira in […]

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler believes his “integrity” was wrongly called into question in the aftermath of his defeat earlier this month.

Two years on from a submission loss to Dustin Poirier at Madison Square Garden, Chandler made his long-awaited return inside the same venue on Nov. 16, running it back with Charles Oliveira in the co-main event of UFC 309.

Having previously been on the wrong end of a memorable comeback form “do Bronx” in their 2021 title showdown, the former Bellator champion had his sights set on redemption in New York City.

But “Iron” fell convincingly short of that on fight night, with Oliveira securing a convincing decision victory following a dominant five rounds from the Brazilian.

As was the case after his setback against “The Diamond,” Chandler has been accused of seeking advantages outside the boundaries of the ruleset, with cries of fence grabs, eye pokes, and egregious back of the head strikes filling social media.

According to Chandler, however, the claim he consistently fouled at UFC 309 was a lie created by those sat cageside with mic in hand.

During an appearance on Wednesday’s episode of The Ariel Helwani Show on Uncrowned, Chandler commented on how his actions were commentated over by Jon Anik, Joe Rogan, and Daniel Cormier after rewatching the broadcast.

“Watching it on TV wasn’t as appealing to me,” Chandler said. “A little bit of the commentary (bothered me) when it comes to some of the stuff they were saying — the misinterpretation of what the back of the head is by the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial arts, the misinterpretation of what cage-grabbing is, and a couple of different things.

“I’m an honest guy. I try to live pretty full of integrity and full of honest, and a narrative that has been painted is not very interesting to me. I’m not very happy about it,” Chandler continued. “I’m not going to say I didn’t do anything wrong. … (But) 90 percent of the shots at least, most of them…all of them, my hand, my fist was catching the ear. If you’re catching the ear, that is not the back of the head. … A referee who was within two feet away never said one thing about it. Then you’ve got commentators 35 feet away saying it’s the back of the head.”

Those controversial strikes came in the final round when Chandler enjoyed his only success of the fight. With that in mind, he gave his performance a “2 out of 10” rating during the same interview with Helwani.

And although he maintained his reputation as an entertainer in the dying moments at UFC 309, the result has left “Iron” with a losing 2-4 record in the Octagon — something he’ll look to rectify in 2025.

John McCarthy says Michael Chandler is Cooked: ‘He’s Hit Tony Ferguson Status’

John McCarthy says Michael Chandler is Cooked: 'He's Hit Tony Ferguson Status'Former UFC referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy thinks Michael Chandler has finally hit Tony Ferguson status. After sitting on the…

John McCarthy says Michael Chandler is Cooked: 'He's Hit Tony Ferguson Status'

Former UFC referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy thinks Michael Chandler has finally hit Tony Ferguson status.

After sitting on the sidelines for two years waiting for a fight that never came to fruition, Chandler returned to the Octagon at UFC 309 for a rematch with former lightweight world champion Charles Oliveira. Despite a valiant effort and an electrifying fifth round, Chandler came up short on the scorecards.

Michael Chandler

With the loss, Chandler has lost four of his last five under the UFC banner with his only win during that run coming against Ferguson at UFC 274.

Looking back on the ex-Bellator titleholder’s performance in MSG, McCarthy suggested that Chandler’s career is on a downward trajectory, similar to that of ‘El Cucuy’ who infamously lost eight straight before being shown the door earlier this year.

“Michael Chandler has hit Tony Ferguson status — just being honest … absolutely,” McCarthy said in a recent episode of his WEIGHING IN podcast with Josh Thomson. “Who’s he going to beat? He looked slow. You cannot look slow in the lightweight division. You’re going to die, and he got outwrestled by a jiu-jitsu guy” (h/t Sportskeeda).

Where does Michael Chandler go from here?

Where Chandler goes from here is anyone’s guess.

Unfortunately, ‘Iron’ wasted a large chunk of his time waiting for a fight with Conor McGregor that, in all honestly, was never going to happen.

Michael Chandler

Of course, that didn’t stop Chandler from calling out the Irishman following his latest loss, but we’ve got a feeling the UFC won’t be itching to book McGregor anytime soon after he was found liable for the 2018 rape of a woman inside a Dublin hotel.

With a losing record and rematches against Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje unlikely, McCarthy doesn’t quite know where Chandler fits in one of the UFC’s most talent-rich divisions.

“Dustin [Poirier] doesn’t want to fight him again because of the same things that he f*cking ended up doing in the Oliveira fight,” McCarthy said. “Now I always sit there and say, ‘If you’re not cheating, you’re not trying,’ but don’t sit there and f*cking tell me that he didn’t hit him to the back of the head.

“I don’t give a f*ck if your fist is going on the other side of his ear when your forearm is hitting him to the back of the head, it’s the f*cking back of the head. … I’m not saying he’s got seven losses in a row (like Ferguson) — I’m saying he’s on the same path as Tony Ferguson.”

Michael Chandler