Michael Chandler suggests the White House UFC bout against Conor McGregor will go ahead

Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight Michael Chandler tells the fighting community there is a chance.For almost three years, Chandler (23-10) has been linked to a fight with former two-division champion Conor McGregor (22-6). The promotion first announced in February 2023 that the two would serve as coaches on the 31st season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” after which the two would clash in a welterweight clash. The UFC staged their fight for UFC 303 in June 2024, but a foot injury suffered by the Irishman scuttled the duo.

At the “New Year’s Eve Life: Nashville’s Big Bash” Airing Wednesday night, Chandler appeared on the CBS show with host and comedian Bert Kreischer. During his brief appearance, Kreischer urged Chandler to make his big reveal: a fight with McGregor is back on the table.“I will say it’s going to be a big year,” Chandler said with a grin after being called Kreischer’s wife’s “favorite human.” “Number one, like you said, the UFC is now on Paramount+ year-round… for most [years]…and there is also a rumor going around. We can’t confirm or deny it, but it sounds like I’ll be giving Conor McGregor some good, passionate, ‘red, white and blue’ ass on the South Lawn of the White House sometime this summer. And that’s the plan, let’s go.”

Steep hill to climb

McGregor stepped away from the sport following his second injury loss to Dustin Poirier in 2021. Multiple injuries to ‘Notorious’ kept him on the shelf for a long time, allowing him to focus on other ventures, such as selling his Proper 12 whiskey company for around $600 million, and buying a stake in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship – the latter of which McGregor stated he would also fight under its banner before retiring.Over the years, McGregor has been involved in multiple criminal and civil cases, including numerous occasions where he allegedly punched or assaulted someone – ranging from the infamous 2019 scene where he punched a pensioner for refusing his whiskey, to breaking musician Francesco Facchinietti’s nose in a nightclub, to allegations of attacking a woman on his yacht while anchored off Spain, or dressing the Miami Heat mascot to crack the costume wearer’s jaw. He was also recently found civilly liable for the 2018 sexual assault of Nikita Hand, ordering him to pay damages and her legal costs. He even briefly threw his hat into the ring to run for President of Ireland, but withdrew before seeking mandatory nominations from the Irish parliament called Oireachtas Eireann.

Since McGregor’s last cage excursion, Chandler has competed four times. Facing Tony Ferguson, Poirier, Charles Oliveira and Paddy Pimblett, the Kill Cliff FC player defeated only Ferguson of that bunch. His last win came in May 2022, compared to McGregor’s win over Donald Cerrone in January 2020. Should the bout go down to 170 pounds, it would be Chandler’s first foray into that weight class since an appearance on Strikeforce in 2010. On the other hand, McGregor vs. Cerrone places at welterweight.