Video: Michael Chandler Confirms Conor McGregor UFC Fight ...
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More than one year after UFC president Dana White said Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler would square off inside the octagon, it appears there's actual progress in making the fight a reality.
Appearing on FS1's TMZ Sports show, Chandler said he's "got the official announcement" the fight is "happening this summer."
Chandler said he couldn't give the official date for the bout, but it is going to happen. This comes after McGregor told ESPN's Marc Raimondi on Tuesday they "got confirmation a few days ago that it's all systems go" for a matchup this summer.
According to Raimondi, McGregor has previously said the fight with Chandler was going to take place at UFC 303 on June 29.
It was in February 2023 when White announced McGregor and Chandler would serve as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter before squaring off after the season ended and he was going to announce a date and location "soon."
McGREGOR vs CHANDLER IS CONFIRMED!!<a href="https://twitter.com/TheNotoriousMMA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheNotoriousMMA</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeChandlerMMA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MikeChandlerMMA</a> will officially coach the next season of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TUF31?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TUF31</a>! <a href="https://t.co/effjf0Rg2M">pic.twitter.com/effjf0Rg2M</a>
One big hurdle at that point was McGregor wasn't in the United States Anti-Doping Agency testing pool. He originally removed himself from USADA's testing pool while recovering from surgery to repair the fractured left tibia and fibula he suffered in his loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.
USADA confirmed on Oct. 8 that McGregor was back in the testing pool. The organization did not grant an exception on the mandatory requirement that all fighters must be in the pool for six months and return two negative tests before being allowed to compete.
In the same announcement, USADA said UFC was ending its relationship with the organization effective Jan. 1.
Chandler cut a promo calling out McGregor on the Feb. 19 episode of Raw when he was sitting in the crowd.
McGregor hasn't fought since the loss to Poirier. He lost three of his last four bouts, all via stoppage.
Due to the extended wait to make the fight with McGregor, Chandler has been out of action since November 2022 when he lost to Poirier via submission at UFC 281. He's also dropped three of his last four fights.
