Michael Chandler Explains Why He Wasn't In A Hurry To Fight Conor McGregor

Chandler explains why he never gave up on the McGregor fight.

Fernando Quiles Jr. | Oct 10, 2023

Michael Chandler Explains Why He Wasn't In A Hurry To Fight Conor McGregor /

Michael Chandler always wanted the Conor McGregor fight, but he was content with waiting for his time.

McGregor vs. Chandler is a fight the UFC was hoping to book by the end of 2023. That won't be happening, as the "Notorious" one did not re-enter the USADA testing pool in time to fight this year. With that said, McGregor confirmed he sent in the paperwork to be tested once again. Once in the pool, it'll open the door for McGregor to make his UFC return.

Michael Chandler, UFC CEO Dana White, and Conor McGregor on the set of TUF 31 :: (via Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

During an appearance on ESPN's "DC & RC Show," Michael Chandler admitted that waiting for as long as he has for the McGregor fight wasn't easy.

"It's a good question, man," Chandler said. "Obviously, listen, any fight that you really want, that you have your heart set on, it's always tough to wait. Especially, when it's catching lightning in a bottle, when it is the unicorn fight that is the Conor McGregor fight that supersedes or that is right after The Ultimate Fighter, 12 weeks on ESPN. There was a lot of buildup. We've been talking about this thing since February. I had a phone call with Hunter Campbell in this studio in February. I did just have a phone call with Hunter Campbell today. So, things are moving in the right direction."

With that said, "Iron" explained why he was never desperate for the fight to happen.

"Good thing is, I got all kinds of stuff going on outside the cage out here making money," Chandler said. "I'm out here doing just fine."

Chandler also made it clear that he remained positive on the status of the fight.

"I never was going to give up on this fight," Chandler said. "This is the fight that I wanted. I want to fight Conor, I've always wanted to fight Conor and we've been this close now for eight, nine, 10 months. Some days it felt like it wasn't gonna happen, but it wasn't that hard for me, man."

While McGregor vs. Chandler still isn't official, UFC CEO Dana White has confirmed that it remains the plan for "Mystic Mac's" return. McGregor has been out of action since July 2021 when he suffered a broken tibia and fibula against Dustin Poirier in their trilogy fight.

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Published Oct 10, 2023

FERNANDO QUILES JR.

Fernando has over a decade of combat sports news writing experience. He currently covers MMA, boxing, and pro wrestling. Fernando joined MMA Knockout as the Lead Writer/Editor when it was founded in 2023.