Having previously helped coach McGregor’s team on The Ultimate Fighter, UFC legend Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson has some helpful advice for Michael Chandler regarding the return fight of the one and only ‘Notorious’.
As MMA fans around the world continue to wait for an official announcement from the promotion, there’s an argument to be made that Michael Chandler should move on from the super-fight with the iconic Irishman.
Stephen Thompson advises Michael Chandler to make the ‘smart’ choice
Earlier this week, Conor McGregor shared a series of cryptic posts to his Instagram page, showing him training on a heavy bag with the caption “#FreeTheMac” and then “When I get free” as fans demanded that the UFC finally ‘release the beast’.
Despite Dana White previously stating that the super-fight won’t happen in 2024, ‘Iron’ Michael Chandler believes that UFC 310 in December could still be on the cards – should the promotion look to push forward with a ‘Notorious’ final PPV of the year.
Yet as Chandler slowly creeps towards his two-year anniversary on the sidelines, there’s an argument to be made that the fan-favorite American should ditch ‘red panty night’ in favor of fighting another top contender.
Speaking to talkSPORT MMA, veteran Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson said that the only ‘smart’ decision left for Chandler is to wait out the UFC in order to secure that Conor McGregor bout.
“It’s frustrating because I definitely would love to see him [McGregor] fight again sometime soon, I know he broke his toe and things, but you’ve got to think [about] it from his part too like he doesn’t have to fight… I know he’s a lifelong martial artist and it would be great for his fight to happen.
“It would be smart for Chandler to wait for that fight because I mean who else is he going to fight? I mean is he going to fight someone lower ranked than him, is he going to fight somebody for the title next, no.”
Wonderboy, who is in training for his own fight against Joaquin Buckley at UFC 307, argued that McGregor is the “big payout” that Chandler has been waiting for and that given the extended layoff, it’s now a “legacy fight” for the former Bellator champion.
“This is a big payout for him and like a legacy fight for Chandler…And I want to see Conor McGregor fight again too… So, for both of those guys I would wait – if I was Chandler I would wait to fight Conor, not anybody else”
Dan Hooker makes his pitch for McGregor to fight him over Chandler
Unfortunately for Chandler, the longer that the fight with McGregor goes un-booked, the more potential opponents make their pitches to take his place – including New Zealand’s own Dan ‘The Hangman’ Hooker.
“I feel like it’s a smart option,” Hooker told Submission Radio, addressing McGregor directly as he pondered: “You’re gonna fight a guy in the top 5 on a 3-fight win streak, or are you gonna fight a guy who’s not in the top 5 and coming off a loss?
“Because I’ve been staying active and fighting the best guys in the world, [Conor] has more to gain from fighting me than he does from Chandler.
“My next fight is gonna be a title eliminator… If he genuinely wants to get back in the mix and genuinely wants to earn his way back to a world title, it makes a lot of sense.”
Whilst Chandler continues to push for the fight with McGregor to take place in December, ‘Iron’ is also finding himself in the sights of the man who last bested him in the octagon, Dustin Poirier.
Yesterday, Chandler shared the highlight of his KO win over Hooker from 2020 with the caption: “KO of the #5 ranked guy who had just went 25 min with the #2 ranked guy in a FOTN…but I ain’t done nothing…”
To which Poirier was quick to respond, “Shut up, I got wins over the #3, #5, #6, #9 and #12 LWs.”