Michael Chandler Is Not the Right Opponent for Conor McGregor on His Return to the UFC; Here’s Why
Conor McGregor was extremely active in 2021. ‘The Notorious’ competed twice last year, which reflected in the UFC’s financial figures. The promotion led by Dana White sold over 9 million PPV buys last year, which was a record for the most sold in a calendar year. McGregor’s two fights with Poirier last year brought in over 3 million PPV buys combined, which had a huge role to play in the UFC’s success.
However, so far this year McGregor has not competed in the UFC, although he will compete before the end of this year. Given that he is the biggest name in the sport, there are a number of fighters that want to take on Conor McGregor. One such fighter being Michael Chandler who called out McGregor after a spectacular knockout win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 274.
In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Dana White shared his thoughts on the matchup. He said, “I don’t know. I really like [Michael] Chandler vs. Conor after Chandler’s last fight. There’s plenty of fights to make. I don’t know if [Masvidal vs. McGregor] is the one, but we’ll see what the landscape looks like when Conor comes back.”
White continued, “I’m just saying, after his last interview, his last fight, Conor is ranked No. 8, he’s ranked No. 5 — it makes a lot of sense right now,” White added of Chandler. He’s getting better,” White said of McGregor. “He’s starting to ramp up his training some more and I’m hoping [he’s ready to return at] the end of this year, early next year.”
Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler the fight to make?
‘The Notorious’ vs ‘Iron’ would be an extremely interesting fight to make. However, it will not be the best fight to make for the UFC from a financial point of view.
The fight against Nate Diaz will be a much bigger fight for the UFC and McGregor. And given that Diaz is on the last fight of his contract and unsure of extending it, this will be the best time and the only time for the company to make the trilogy. Therefore, White and his team will be aiming to get the fight done under any circumstances.
