UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler has spoken in depth about his will-they, won’t-they matchup with Conor McGregor, and revealed that his fighting career isn’t entirely dependent on what the Irishman decides to do.
Chatting to Lucky Block in a special Q&A session, Chandler addressed a range of topics around McGregor, their proposed fight, and what might happen next if either man opts to take their career in a different direction.
What’s your instinct on the Conor fight happening?
“I am an optimist by default, so I do believe the Conor fight will happen. Right now, we are in a period where things are being talked about. What date? Is it Conor? Is it pivoting to a different fight? Is it making the best decision for me and my family?
“I love the idea that Conor and I did ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ we had a training camp, we signed on the dotted line. But, as much as I respect Conor, my legacy is not hinged upon this fight. I am running my own race, and I’m continuing to move forward.
“I am at the point now where we are looking at all of the options and not just fighting Conor. Things move fast, and the phone could ring at any time. I don’t want to make it sound like I’m not focused on fighting Conor, but right now when no contract is signed, I’m excited to fight. I’m training every day, and I’m in the best shape that I have been in a very long time, and I’m ready to go out there whether it’s Conor or someone else. There’s always going to be life after Conor if this fight never comes to fruition.”
What’s the latest from Dana White?
“The sentiment from Dana doesn’t sound as bleak as a lot of people would think. It doesn’t sound as bleak as a lot of people would think, given Conor’s antics with the ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin vest and the drinking Forged Irish Stout at Bare Knuckle FC, but we’ll see. Either way, I’ve always felt that if the Conor fight didn’t happen I’m going to be just fine, and I will put butts in seats, and I will sell pay-per-views, and I will entertain the entire world when I step inside the octagon.”
How long will you wait for Conor McGregor?
“I don’t really ever put dates on how long I’ll wait, but the sport of mixed martial arts moves very, very fast. I’ve got a whiteboard up here in my house with all the matchups and all the different things going on in the lightweight division. The lightweight division is the most exciting, electrifying division in the sport of mixed martial arts, so I am blessed to be a part of it.”
What do you make of Conor’s behaviour on social media?
“Conor lives his life the way that he wants to live his life. Conor is promoting two different liquor brands, so that’s tough—he needs to be seen with them. Obviously, if you look at it just from a social media standpoint, people think, man, he is definitely not dedicated.
“But, if you guys expect him to be in a training camp right now as we speak, when there is no fight booked, then it’s unrealistic because every single fighter takes their hiatuses in different ways, whether it be drinking, whether it be going out, whether it be eating food that they want to indulge in, whether it’s staying out late. But yeah, there’s some concerning things that people have looked at and then called into question whether he’s coming back. I completely get that. I have a hunch that he is.
“I think Conor needs the UFC. I think the UFC wants Conor to come back. I think he needs it for his own mental state. He loves it. Fighting is his first passion, his main passion. There’s no way he would ever even scratch the surface of what he has accomplished in his life without the platform of the UFC. If you look at the last training camp, he looked sharp, he looked like he was ready. He looked like he was sparring hard. He looked like he was coming to try to take my head off.
“Also, deleted tweets have always been part of his brand. He’s like, ‘I’m gonna tweet this. I’m gonna let it sit there for 20 minutes. I’m gonna let the entire world screenshot it, record it, have everybody retweet it and talk about it. And then I’m gonna delete it,’ just because he’s an egomaniac.”
Who excites you the most if it’s not Conor?
“Max (Holloway) is one of the top ones on that list when it comes to who I would love to share the Octagon with. Justin Gaethje, Fight of the Year 2021, that’s another. Me and Max would absolutely make some bloody, violent magic inside of an Octagon. It could have possibly happened at the Sphere, there were a bunch of different options being thrown out there, but rightfully Max wanted to go get that featherweight title. Me and Max make a lot of sense, that’s the one that excites me the most. And I think that’s something that will get the juices flowing of the fans, as well.”
Who is the most realistic option if it’s not Conor?
“The most realistic option for me if you look at the landscape and you consider everything is Charles Oliveira. I love the rematch with Charles. I think it’s a great fight to get the fans pumped up.
“I almost had him finished in the first round, and then I made a glaring mistake in the second round that I would never, ever make again. It was almost a self-fulfilling prophecy that I was working on in camp that turned out to be my demise.
“Me and Charles for the number one contender spot. I beat Charles, knock him out in the first round, then all of a sudden I’m sitting at the number one contender spot, and I get to choose whether I fight Islam, or do I fight Conor next? And why not both?”
Anyone else on your shortlist?
“Obviously, you’ve got rematches with Dustin Poirier, Islam is up in the air right now with a possible hand injury, so there’s that possible interim title shot against Arman Tsarukyan.
“It’ll be interesting to see what happens with that title fight. It sounds like it’s not going to happen in October anymore, so that could be later in this year in December, or there might need to be an interim title happening, so obviously I would be open to that. I by no means think I deserve that. Everybody will misconstrue it and say, ‘Oh, man, he wants a title shot.’ I’m just saying it’s a fun fight.”
If it is Conor, does December make the most sense?
“December’s got me and Conor written all over it. That’s when we should fight. It’s enough time for him to have healed up and get back into a training camp. December makes a lot of sense.
“People love the violence that I bring to the Octagon, and obviously Conor McGregor is the biggest name in combat sports, so this fight makes a ton of sense. It’s a great matchup. There’s a little bit of gamesmanship/bad blood, but it’s overall respectful, and if Conor and I do fight, I will dispatch him, and finally put an exclamation mark on this big saga that is Chandler versus Conor.
“But we are fighting in the UFC, the biggest combat sports organisation in the world by far, and they have a ton of moving parts. I definitely want to fight by the end of the year. That would be ideal. That’s always the hope. But, man, there’s a lot of options out there.”
Is Paddy Pimblett on your radar?
“I love Paddy. It was great to see him win that last one by finish, so he’s gonna be climbing the rankings. He’s gonna be climbing, and maybe we see him in the top ten in the next couple of fights.
“I’m not really interested in that fight. There’s a lot of people ranked higher. I’m number six, he’s number 15, so it doesn’t really make sense to me. He’s exciting. He’s gonna continue to put on fun fights and continue to climb, but right now it just doesn’t make sense for me. But who knows? If that’s a fight the fans want to see, if that’s a fight the UFC wants, it’s always fun to fight a guy who’s loved by fans.”
