Outside Source
For nearly three years, Chandler (23-10) has been linked to a bout with former two-division champion Conor McGregor (22-6). The promotion first announced in February 2023 that the two would serve as coaches on the 31st season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” after which the two would collide in a welterweight clash. The UFC set up their bout for UFC 303 in June 2024, but a foot injury sustained by the Irishman scuttled the pairing.
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At the “New Year’s Eve Life: Nashville’s Big Bash” broadcast on Wednesday night, Chandler appeared on the CBS-run show with host and comic Bert Kreischer. During his brief appearance, Kreischer goaded Chandler into his big reveal: a fight with McGregor is back on the table again.
“I will say, it’s gonna be a big year,” Chandler said with a grin after being called Kreischer’s wife’s “favorite human being.” “Number one, like you said, the UFC is now on Paramount+, the entire year…for the multitude of [years]…and also, there’s a rumor going around. We can’t confirm nor deny, but it does sound like I might be handing Conor McGregor a good ol’ passionate, ‘red, white and blue’ butt whooping in the South Lawn of the White House sometime this summer. And that’s the plan, let’s go.”
Steep Hill to Climb
McGregor stepped away from the sport following his second stoppage loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021. Multiple injuries to “Notorious” kept him on the shelf for a prolonged time, allowing him to focus on other ventures like selling his Proper 12 whiskey company for around $600 million, and buying a stake in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship—for the latter, McGregor declared he would also fight under its banner before retiring.
Over the years, McGregor has been involved in multiple criminal and civil instances including numerous occasions where he allegedly struck or assaulted someone—ranging from the infamous scene in 2019 where he punched a pensioner for refusing his whiskey, to breaking musician Francesco Facchinietti’s nose in a nightclub, to allegations of assaulting a woman on his yacht while anchored outside of Spain, or decking the Miami Heat mascot to crack the costume-wearer’s jaw. Also, he recently was found civilly liable of the sexual assault of Nikita Hand in 2018, where he has been ordered to pay damages as well as her court costs. He even briefly cast his hat in the ring to run for the president of Ireland, but withdrew before seeking mandatory nominations from the Irish Parliament called Oireachtas Eireann.
Since McGregor’s last in-cage excursion, Chandler has competed four times. Facing Tony Ferguson, Poirier, Charles Oliveira and Paddy Pimblett, the Kill Cliff FC staple only beat Ferguson of that bunch. His last victory came in May 2022, compared to McGregor’s over Donald Cerrone in January 2020. Should the match materialize at 170 pounds, it would Chandler’s first jaunt at that weight division since a 2010 outing in Strikeforce. On the other hand, McGregor vs. Cerrone took place at welterweight.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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