Former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor made an announcement of his next fight date scheduled for Saturday, June 29 against Michael Chandler in Las Vegas. According to “The Notorious”, the bout, marking his Octagon return, is set to be contested at middleweight.
The long-awaited showdown, pitting “The Ultimate Fighter 31” opposing teams’ coaches, tops the UFC pay-per-view fight card, highlighting International Fight Week.
“Ladies and gentlemen, a Happy New Tear to you all. I’d like to announce the return date for myself, ‘The Notorious”, Conor McGregor, for the greatest comeback of all time,” McGregor says in a video posted on social media.
“[The fight] will take place in Las Vegas for International Fight Week on June the 29th.”
“And the opponent [is] Michael Chandler. And the weight, Mr. Chandler, [is] 185 pounds,” he concludes with a laugh.
Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler
Making his comeback, former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor McGregor (22-6) is looking to return to winning ways, following a pair of defeats via TKO against Dustin Poirier. In his previous outing in July 2021, the 35-year-old Irishman suffered a broken tibia in the first round. In January the same year, the Dublin native was stopped in the second round with punches.
McGregor’s most recent win goes back to January 2020, when he defeated Donald Cerrone in the first round, which was also his Octagon return after he failed to reclaim UFC lightweight title against Khabib Nurmagomedov in October 2018.
Former two-time Bellator MMA lightweight champion Michael Chandler (23-8) was submitted by Poirier in the third-round last time out in November 2022. In May the same year, High Ridge, Missouri’s 37-year-old TKO’d Tony Ferguson in the first round with front kick.
In November 2021, Chandler dropped a unanimous decision against Justin Gaethje, following an unsuccessful UFC lightweight title challenge against Charles Oliveira in May 2021, when he was stopped in the second round with punches.
The formal fight announcement, made by the promotion, is expected to be made shortly.
In the UK and Australia, Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler airs live on Sunday, June 30.
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