Despite being fit and healthy throughout, Chandler hasn’t fought since his UFC 281 defeat to Dustin Poirier back in November 2022. He appeared alongside McGregor on The Ultimate Fighter as the pair coached opposite each other to tee up a huge matchup between the pair.
But, when the time came to fight, the bout didn’t happen. An injury to McGregor’s pinky toe forced him off their planned matchup at UFC 303 during UFC International Fight Week earlier this year. But now, with the matchup appearing to have lost all momentum, Chandler has opted to move on, and will now face former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden on November 16.
After the news broke, Chandler recorded a video on his YouTube channel to explain his thinking behind the decision, and how he plans to approach things in the coming weeks and months.
“I am pivoting,” he said.
“Why? Because I’m a fighter through and through, and I think you guys have forgotten that nobody would have had the balls to make this decision and bet on themselves like this,” he said.
“And, for me, this is personal. This is a revenge fight. Charles Oliveira stole my dream of becoming UFC champion. My number one goal becoming the number one guy in the entire world, back in Houston, Texas, my second fight in the UFC. So now I talked to Henry Hooft this morning (and) we’re putting together a gameplan to go beat him in the rematch. This is always the way it was supposed to be.”
Chandler also addressed comments made by McGregor, and said that any shade thrown his way by the Irishman is all water off a duck’s back, and just highlights the fact that McGregor hasn’t had things his way, and now someone has decided to move on from him, rather than the other way around.
“I know Conor is already out there talking. Obviously, he has to talk, and he has to throw shade at me and tell me, I’m an idiot for squandering the bag, and this is the biggest fight, and now he’s just upset.
“He’s got his feelings hurt because he realises what I’ve realised the entire time, but haven’t been public about it. I don’t need Conor McGregor to cement my legacy in this sport.
“I’m here to be champion. I’m here to be number one. That’s why I’m why I’m about to make this title run. I dispatch of Charles Oliveira November 16 at Madison Square Garden, which will be my third fight of the night at Madison Square Garden since I’ve been in the UFC, I’m gonna go get my hand raised and then I go win the title, or I finally get the opportunity to snatch Conor McGregor’s soul out of his body.”
It all means that, rather than sitting on the shelf and waiting for the sport’s biggest star to return, Chandler is taking back control of his own career, as he looks to move on and put himself in line to fight for the undisputed UFC lightweight title.
“So I thought I just needed to make take a moment to remind you guys who Michael Chandler is. For the people who have said I’ve lost steam, I have never once slowed down, even though I have not been crazy public about it and been all over the place.
“I’ve been quietly working and quietly biding my time and quietly building a foundation for this crazy comeback that we were about to do to become the number one contender, to go win the belt, to go smash Connor, or maybe even fight Max Holloway for the BMF, which was offered to Max at the Sphere, and Max turned it down, which I respect that – Max is going to beat Ilia Topuria and become the featherweight champion.
“So, exciting times. This is where my mindset is at. I made this decision weeks ago, and I’ve known that I was going to pivot, but you guys know how I operate. I move in silence and I keep on working, because I don’t need the attention, the clout, the eyeballs, to make me feel like a significant human being.
“Quietly work, continuing to walk on. So, here we go. November 16 is right around the corner. Madison Square Garden. I dispatch Charles Oliveira, I become the number one contender, I become your lightweight champion in 2025. God bless. I’ll see you at the top.”
