Speaking at UFC 303 in Las Vegas, both Michael Chandler and Dana White provided new updates surrounding the return fight of one Conor McGregor.
Conor McGregor might have been absent from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas last night, but his original UFC 303 opponent Michael Chandler was indeed in attendance and offered fans some key updates regarding the status of that enormous superfight.
Dana White wouldn’t recommend Michael Chandler wait for McGregor
During the UFC 303 post-fight press conference, Dana White was asked what he believes Michael Chandler should do next; either wait out for Conor McGregor’s eventual return or move on to the next potential opponent.
“I never recommend waiting, time is not your friend in this business, but Michael’s been around for a long time, he’s accomplished a lot of things and he’s at a point in his career where that might be what he wants to do… He’s not a dumb guy, he’s a smart guy so whatever he wants to do.”
Whilst the UFC boss remains adamant that Chandler is the one with leverage over his next fight in the octagon, what did Michael Chandler himself have to say when he faced the cameras late last night in Las Vegas?
Michael Chandler offers update on Conor McGregor return fight
Talking to the media before what was a truly outstanding night of action at UFC 303, Michael Chandler offered an update regarding his expected return fight against Conor McGregor.
In fact, Chandler’s statement had several intriguing parts to it, including that he had just held a meeting with the UFC brass and that they had even offered him several replacement opponents so that he could retain his place on the PPV.
Firstly, ‘Iron’ was asked about his feelings watching UFC 303 unfold from the sidelines, to which the fan favorite lightweight acknowledged that “I think as an athlete, you get really good at compartmentalizing things, and I can honestly say that it’s not been very hard.
“It hasn’t affected me as much as most people would think it has, it’s just the way the world goes – the true measure of a man is how he stands under circumstances like this.”
Yet on the fight with McGregor, and whether he will indeed get the opportunity to step in there after ‘Notorious’ recovers from his broken toe, Chandler shared that he is “not really that worried” about being passed over.
“I’m not letting him off the hook, of course he would love to comeback and fight somebody other than Michael Chandler, [but] there’s no way he comes back to the UFC and doesn’t fight me.
“If I do pivot, if there are other names being thrown out and huge fights that I can pivot and take, whenever he is ready to comeback, his road back to the UFC goes straight through Nashville, Tennessee and Michael Chandler. And that’s it.”
Chandler explained how whilst he and his team have “always been focused on Conor, [but] obviously the UFC has a duty to look at other options,” before admitting that it was tough not to take those ‘options’ for a short-notice UFC 303 save under consideration.
“Life is all about adapting to circumstances and time… In that moment, I’m ready to fight. I was sitting on my sofa in South Florida talking to management, talking to the UFC. You know part of me just wants to fight, they were considered, but yeah, here we are.”
When asked about a potential timeline for a rescheduled Chandler vs McGregor superfight, ‘Iron’ revealed that he had actually held a meeting with the UFC brass just 24 hours on how to best navigate the situation.
“I was with the UFC [last night] so we’re working on some things. It’s always related to Conor… [And] sources close to Conor know that he’s going to be ready in September, August – so we can make some things happen.
“There are some great options out there, a lot of options that you guys have all heard, and I love fighting big names, big fights, big venues, big opportunities. I’ve got a lot of options, but we’re still focused on Conor.”
So, if Chandler is to be believed, the plan is still to face Conor McGregor later in the year once the Irish superstar has recovered – but that isn’t to say that Chandler is forced to sit on the sidelines, with the door now firmly open for a potential BMF title fight vs Max Holloway as a replacement.
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