"This is not me hating on Mike" - Daniel Cormier doubts Michael Chandler will get PPV points for Conor McGregor bout at UFC 303
Former UFC double champion Daniel Cormier recently weighed in on Conor McGregor's upcoming return against Michael Chandler at UFC 303.
Cormier addressed the commercial side of the pay-per-view (PPV) specifically, raising questions over Chandler's contribution to promoting and marketing the event. On his YouTube channel, 'DC' mentioned that McGregor will drive the bulk of the PPV sales.
Cormier then explained his doubts about Chandler getting PPV points:
"I don't know why you would give pay-per-view points to someone that's not going to drive the sales. And this is not me hating on Mike. He's not driving the sales on his one. When you fight Conor McGregor, Conor's driving the sales, he's obviously going to be a part of the pay-per-view and part of the business."
Cormier also stated that 'The Notorious' is seemingly controlling the decisions regarding their matchup.
"Mike's still ranked in the top five or six in the world, so yeah, of course he's compelling. Ultimately this one feels like it's about McGregor, and part of that reason is because Conor continues to tell you how he's making all these decisions, and essentially telling Mike, 'We're doing this, we're doing this, we're doing this.'"
Check out Daniel Cormier's full comments on Michael Chandler (30:55):
Michael Chandler discusses how Conor McGregor fight will play out at UFC 303
Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor have both not fought for an extended period of time. Chandler's last outing was his loss to Dustin Poirier in late 2022, while McGregor's last octagon appearance was his defeat to Poirier in their trilogy in 2021, wherein he suffered a gruesome leg injury.
However, Chandler is confident of his own cardio and aims to tire out McGregor through the opening round of the UFC 303 main event. In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, 'Iron' outlined his plans for the fight and said he would finish the Irishman in the second round:
"Also, I think I'll take the center of the octagon and I think I'll start sucking the oxygen out of the octagon. By the end of the first round he's going to know, 'I probably should've found a different opponent.' Then I'll finish him in the second [round], whether that's on the ground, or on the feet. But I'd like to keep it on the feet."
Check out Michael Chandler's full comments below (3:28:38):