Bellator ex-champ Michael Chandler on Eddie Alvarez, brain trauma in MMA and more

Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

MMA Fighting’s Luke Thomas got former Bellator Lightweight champ Michael Chandler to open up about his concerns regarding the long-term impact of brain injury, his teammate Dominick Cruz, what went wrong in the rematch with Eddie Alvarez and how he plans to change things in their PPV rubber match, Anthony Pettis vs. Jose Aldo, the pros and conds of the Bellator tournament model and much more.

Chandler was in D.C. to participate in the press conference with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sen. John McCain about brain trauma in combat sports.

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About the author

Nate Wilcox

Nate Wilcox is the founding editor of BloodyElbow.com. As such he has hired every editor and writer to work for the site. Wilcox’s writing for BE is known for its emphasis on MMA history, the evolution of fighting techniques and strong opinions. Wilcox developed the SBN MMA consensus rankings which were featured in USA Today from 2009 to 2011. Before founding BE, Wilcox was a political operative working for such figures as Senators John Kerry and Mark Warner and an early political blogger. He is the co-author of Netroots Rising, a history of the political blogosphere from 2003 to 2007. Wilcox also hosts the Let It Roll podcast on music history for the Pantheon Podcast Network.