Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor were meant to fight one another during the summer, but that bout had to be postponed. McGregor suffered a foot injury that resulted in his having to take some time off.
Chandler had been waiting two years for the matchup and finally decided to move on. Though he still plans to face off against the Irish superstar, he is set to take on Charles Oliveira for a chance at lightweight gold.
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The matchup makes sense considering Chandler is still a highly touted lightweight contender. However, he revealed to Newsweek Sports that the UFC booked him for another more surprising matchup before Oliveira. Apparently, the MMA world was close to seeing Chandler vs Max Holloway.
Would Max Holloway be a fight that you would consider taking somewhere down the line, or perhaps in 2025, or sometime later?
Chandler:
“I watched that fight [Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway]. I have a ton of respect for Max. I absolutely love him as a fighter, as a brand, as a brand ambassador. He’s one of the good ones. He’s just a great dude. But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t love to compete against him, right? I think he would say the same thing about me. Max, I actually accepted a fight with Max at The Sphere at UFC 303 after the Conor fight fell through. But, rightfully so, he turned it down because he had his sights set on the title. He wanted to be the featherweight champion more than he wanted to defend the BMF belt. So, he made that decision. I’m always a little hesitant to say that because I don’t ever want to make it seem like Max Holloway turned the fight down. That would be crazy. He had his eyes set on the featherweight title. So, I’ve already said yes to that fight. The UFC knows that fight is on my radar. The UFC sees me as one of the guys on the shortlist for the BMF belt, so I would love to compete against Max, I would love the BMF title to be on the line.”
Chandler is a top 10 contender in the lightweight division, as is Holloway. Holloway defeated Justin Gaethje in spectacular fashion at UFC 300 and pulled off one of the greatest knockouts in UFC history. Now, he has a top-five ranking of his own, and a fight with Chandler would make a ton of sense.
Granted, Holloway is likely to take some time off after he was knocked out by Topuria, and Chandler has his first fight back in the octagon with Oliveira in November.
However, should McGregor not be readily available or the title fight be presented to Chandler in 2025, there could be a BMF title fight happening between these two superstars.
Read more: Exclusive: Michael Chandler on Charles Oliveira, Conor McGregor, and UFC Goals
For more on Chandler’s new partnership with Aires Tech, his fight with Oliveira, and a potential timeline for McGregor, check out more of the interview here.
For more UFC News, head to Newsweek Sports.