Michael Chandler is remaining hopeful that he will eventually fight Conor McGregor and he has even dropped a fight date.
Instead of waiting even longer to fight Conor McGregor, Michael Chandler returned to the Octagon this past April at UFC 314 where he took on Paddy Pimblett.
Unfortunately for Chandler he was utterly dominated by Pimblett and was subsequently finished in round three of their co-main event.
Prior to the fight, McGregor declared his interest in fighting the winner of the lightweight fight and despite ‘The Baddy’ coming out on top, he told Chandler that they have unfinished business.
Michael Chandler drops fight date for McGregor clash
Since then, McGregor has dropped more hints regarding his return to the UFC, ordering Dana White to send the doctors to him so that he can re-enter the testing pool.
Despite the Irishman’s clear eagerness to return to action, White recently provided a bleak update claiming that McGregor won’t return any time soon.
And with that, ‘Iron’ Chandler has provided a huge update this Thursday, claiming that he and the former UFC double champion will finally clash in 2026.
“Conor!!!” Chandler first said on Threads.
“1/24/26,” Chandler added in a separate post.
With ‘The Notorious’ having not registered a test session yet this year according to the UFC Anti-Doping database, a return in 2026 would make sense as it would give him time to be in the testing pool for the six-month period that he would need to be.
McGregor was recently called out by BKFC star Mike Perry, but that fight cannot happen until the Irishman has finally finished his contract with the UFC.
Conor McGregor recently celebrated a title in a different sport
During his time out of the Octagon, McGregor has put a lot of time into promoting fights in BKFC where he is now a co-owner.
As well as that, ‘The Notorious’ has been competing in soccer, and he recently celebrated winning the league with his soccer team, Black Forge F.C.
Despite his continued fame and wealth, McGregor is seemingly still eyeing up a return to combat sports, and a long-awaited clash against Chandler seems like the only viable outcome.