“Feeling dangerous” - Michael Chandler begins training camp for Conor McGregor super fight
Michael Chandler seems motivated to go into the biggest fight of his MMA career after Conor McGregor claimed that he will fight the 36-year-old in June 2024.
Chandler and McGregor have been linked for a fight since their TUF Season 31 stint as rival coaches. The pair were expected to fight each other after the season concluded.
However, McGregor’s situation with USADA delayed his return. The former UFC double champ enroled in the USADA testing pool in late 2023, removing a major hurdle from his path.
While the UFC has not officially announced the date or opponent for his octagon return, it was speculated that the Dubliner may fight at the milestone UFC 300 event. However, Chandler accepted McGregor’s surprise call for an International Fight Week showdown.
Although the proposed date is six months away and there has been no official announcement yet, Chandler seems to have started his training camp, as he recently posted on X:
“In camp… Woke up feeling dangerous.”
McGregor vs. Chandler is an interesting stylistic matchup according to the industry experts. The oddsmakers have McGregor as the slight -120 favorite, while Chandler is a +100 underdog.
If the fight comes to fruition on the proposed date, it will be the Irishman’s first octagon appearance in three years. He last competed against Dustin Poirier in July 2021. Unfortunately, McGregor suffered a gruesome leg break toward the end of the first round and had to sit on the sidelines for a full recovery.
Conor McGregor will create history if the fight against Michael Chandler takes place at middleweight
While announcing his comeback fight, Conor McGregor claimed that the Michael Chandler fight would take place at middleweight. Chandler, who wants to fight the best version of McGregor, has agreed to compete at 185 pounds.
The former UFC double champ has competed in three weight classes under the UFC umbrella. If the fight against ‘Iron’ goes down at middleweight, McGregor will become only the third fighter in UFC history to compete in four different divisions.
MMA journalist Mike Bohn highlighted this fact in a post on his X account:
“If this happens at middleweight, @TheNotoriousMMA would join Diego Sanchez & Kenny Florian as the only fighters in UFC history to fight in four weight classes (only Florian won in four). Sanchez & Florian both started at 185 and went down. McGregor started at 145 and has escalated.”