Michael Chandler has fired back at people criticizing his inactivity in recent years, as a legacy-defining fight with Conor McGregor etches closer and closer.
Now at 38 years old, there have been claims that Michael Chandler has lost some of his prime years to waiting out Conor McGregor – yet with the super-fight confirmed for June, the fan-favorite athlete is taking no prisoners as he responds to accusations of ‘inactivity’.
Michael Chandler finally faces Conor McGregor at UFC 303
It’s a fight that looked certain to happen, then in doubt, then certain, then in doubt again; yet after all the media coverage and back-and-forth arguments on social media, Michael Chandler finally gets the opportunity that he’s been asking for at UFC 303.
The return fight of Conor McGregor will undoubtedly be one of the biggest MMA events of the year and in turn, Chandler has the chance to steal the headlines of the combat sports world, should he get his hand raised on June 29.
Yet as UFC 303 etches closer and closer, Chandler has now fired back at those fans and fighters who previously claimed he was wasting his prime years in waiting for ‘Notorious’.
Michael Chandler fires back at inactivity claims over McGregor fight
In a live Q&A, as shared by The Mac Life on YouTube, Chandler was asked what he thought about claims levied against him; that he should have been more active in the time since his 2022 fight against Dustin Poirier, had he not waited out for McGregor and the infamous ‘Red Panty Night’ payday that comes along with it.
“Yeah, I would have and guess what, it wouldn’t have been as big as this one. People can talk about waiting and wasting your prime [years], they want to talk about ‘you’re doing this and doing that’, but you ain’t me and I ain’t you – I’m running my own race.”
“Anybody in the sport of mixed martial arts, whether they are lying to you or not, or you think they are telling you truth, they would have done exactly what I did,” said the former Bellator lightweight king, before taking a swing at fellow fighters who have criticized him in the past:
“Trust me they’re all full of envy and of my enviable position that I’m in – they can act like they’re tough guys, and they would’ve fought 4 times in the time that I sat out.”
‘Iron’ shared how competing at the highest levels three or four times in a single year is becoming a rarity for those nearer the top of their divisions, and that all the criticisms will pale in comparison to getting his hand raised at UFC 303:
“Everybody averages about two fights per year these days when you get into the top 5 so maybe I missed out on one or two fights, but none of them are going to even hold a candle to what is about to happen June 29th…Eyeballs, platform, finances, everything.”
“We let the internet talk and the trolls troll, and we let the opinionated have their opinions as we run our own race, because winners focus on winning and losers focus on winners,” stated the fan favorite lightweight.
Chandler ‘not worried’ about Conor McGregor’s counter-striking
Undoubtedly the most dangerous weapon that Chandler must be cautious of is the counter left hand of Conor McGregor, which has put away countless top-tier UFC stars over the years.
Whilst Chandler noted that McGregor’s counter-shot isn’t as crisp as it was in the past, “it’s one of the best that we’ve ever seen in the game” adding that, “he’s still thrown it millions of times so that muscle memory is still there.”
“It’s something that we’re thinking about, it’s something that we’re working on, it’s something that we’re going to be cognizant of; however, it’s not going to be something that we are overly worried about.”
“You guys know how I fight, I’m worried about me and focused on me, coming forward and putting my foot on the gas and letting the fight happen as it may,” added Chandler, before reiterating that “it’s still dangerous and something we got to think about.”
Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler is the main event of UFC 303, scheduled to go down on June 29 from Las Vegas.