Conor McGregor‘s anticipated fight against Michael Chandler was postponed due to McGregor’s toe injury, leaving his return uncertain, but Chandler remains confident and determined that their bout will eventually happen.
Conor McGregor will fight again someday. And Michael Chandler will be waiting for him.
Saturday’s UFC 303 event was supposed to feature McGregor and Chandler in a welterweight bout. This fight was the climax of their long-standing rivalry, which included social media jabs and a stint as opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter 31.
But things fell apart. McGregor first pulled out of a press conference in Dublin, then withdrew from the fight due to a toe injury.
Currently, McGregor’s comeback from a three-year hiatus remains uncertain. He hasn’t committed to making the Chandler fight happen.
Chandler isn’t discouraged by McGregor’s indecisiveness. “I didn’t even really think about it much,” Chandler said during a backstage scrum at UFC 303 in Las Vegas.
“He tried to steal my tagline though,” Chandler added with a smirk. “See you at the top.” Not worried about it, he continued, “Conor can’t—at this point, I’m not letting him off the hook.”
“For a while there, yeah, he would love to fight somebody other than me,” Chandler admitted. But he believes there’s no way McGregor returns without facing him.
“If I do pivot,” Chandler mused, “if there are other names being thrown out… whenever he is ready to come back, his road back goes straight through Nashville and me.”
McGregor’s injury has raised eyebrows. Known for rarely pulling out of fights in his 16-year career, his pinky toe injury received little sympathy.
Chandler chose not to criticize McGregor’s broken pinky toe. Instead, he reflected on how it impacts his own reputation.
“It’s somewhat of a feather in my cap,” Chandler remarked. If Conor were up against other fighters, he might have pushed through.
“But you don’t want to fight me with any kind of injuries,” Chandler stated confidently. He speculated that McGregor thought twice about fighting him injured.
Chandler has been inactive too since losing by submission to Dustin Poirier at UFC 291 in November 2022. Despite this, he’s financially stable thanks to business ventures outside the UFC.
Other potential opponents for Chandler include Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway. However, no formal offers have been made yet.
He remains certain that the McGregor fight will eventually happen. When it does, it could be the biggest feel-good moment of his career.
“At the onset of this process,” Chandler said passionately, “that size of a fight with that amount of eyeballs is what we strive for as mixed martial artists.”
“We get into this sport to be the best and perform on the biggest stages under the brightest lights.” For him, this checks all boxes.
“With all the storyline buildup and intrigue,” Chandler concluded excitedly, “yeah… it’s going to be very satisfying when I knock him out.”
“It was going to be in the second round," he declared with determination. "Now? Probably first round.”