Conor McGregor gives surprising reaction to Michael Chandler's UFC 309 loss in deleted tweet
Many were surprised by Conor McGregor's recent reaction to Michael Chandler's defeat at UFC 309. The Irishman has been taking shots at Chandler on social media since they were coaches at TUF 31. McGregor sarcastically lauded the American fighter's recent performance inside the octagon.
After a failed matchup with McGregor, Chandler took on his former opponent Charles Oliveira in a rematch in the co-main event of UFC 309, which took place this past Saturday. Oliveira dominated the former Bellator lightweight champion for four rounds, displaying his all-round ability.
However, Chandler was able to reverse the momentum in the last round when he stunned the Brazilian with a right hook. After 25 minutes of intense action, Oliveira was declared winner via unanimous decision, putting him in contention for the title.
Following the fight, Chandler spoke to Joe Rogan during his in-ring interview and called out McGregor, saying:
''Conor McGregor, if you can ever get your house back in order while us real professionals have been keeping the octagon warm, we're wondered where you've been Conor, come back and beat me if you can.''
Check out Michael Chandler's comments below (0:49):
McGregor responded in a now-deleted X post by positively mocking Chandler and praising his performance versus Oliveira. @MMAFighting handle on X shared a picture of the deleted post where McGregor wrote:
''Cut Michael Chandler! Just Kidding, good fight. Mad little fellow is Michael. I like em'!''
McGregor's last octagon appearance was at UFC 264 in July 2021, when he faced former interim champion Dustin Poirier. Unfortunately, 'The Notorious' suffered a leg injury in the opening round.
Upon recovery, he featured on 'TUF 31', where the former two-division champion acted as a coach opposite Chandler. The two were expected to lock horns at the end of last year. However, McGregor's dispute with USADA, along with a variety of problems, prevented that from happening.
McGregor was then scheduled to face Chandler at UFC 303 in a welterweight clash, however, a toe injury sustained while training forced him to withdraw from the bout.
Dana White addresses Michael Chandler's callout of Conor McGregor
Following his loss at UFC 309, Michael Chandler once again targeted Conor McGregor and called him out.
Dana White didn't appear hopeful about Chandler's callout when asked about it during the post-fight press conference. The UFC CEO also gave an update on McGregor's return, saying:
''Conor [McGregor] is going to come back in late 2025! So there will be a lot of time before we figure out who's going to fight Conor."
Check out Dana White's comments below (via Championship Rounds' X post):