Michael Chandler News

Adam D Martin - November 8, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler called out Conor McGregor, and McGregor replied by saying that “I’m down” to fight at some point. Chandler fought three hard rounds with Justin Gaethje at this past Saturday’s UFC 268 pay-per-view card. Although Chandler lost the unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards, his stock arguably went up despite the loss just because it was such an incredible fight. Importantly, Chandler’s durability allowed him to stay in the fight despite Gaethje throwing everything that he had at him. It was an amazing fight and it looks like the performance of Chandler caught the eye of the sport’s biggest star in McGregor.

Adam Martin - November 7, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje reacted following his Fight of the Night war with Michael Chandler at Saturday’s UFC 268 card. Gaethje and Chandler went to war for 15 minutes in what was the best fight of the night at UFC 268. Both Gaethje and Chandler stool in the center of the Octagon and traded punches and kicks for three full rounds. Incredibly, both men had the toughness and durability to actually make it the distance even despite throwing everything including the kitchen sink at each other’s heads. It was an absolutely phenomenal fight, but at the end of the three rounds, it was Gaethje who got his hand raised by unanimous decision.

Christopher Taylor - November 6, 2021

Michael Chandler has reacted after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Justin Gaethje at tonight’s UFC 268 event in New York City. Chandler (22-7 MMA) had entered Saturday’s pay-per-view fight card with hopes of rebounding from his recent loss to Charles Oliveira. Prior to that setback, ‘Iron Mike’ was coming off a first round knockout victory over Dan Hooker in his Octagon debut.

Chris Taylor - November 6, 2021

The main card of tonight’s UFC 268 event was kicked off by a highly anticipated lightweight fight between Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler. Gaethje (23-3 MMA), the promotions former interim lightweight champion, was returning to action for the first time in twelve months this evening at MSG. ‘The Highlight’ had last competed in October of 2020, where he suffered a submission loss to former lightweight kingpin Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Christopher Taylor - November 4, 2021

Dana White has seemingly dismissed the notion that Islam Makhachev could leapfrog Michael Chandler or Justin Gaethje in the UFC contender line. Makhachev (21-1 MMA) improved his current win streak to nine in a row at last weekend’s UFC 267 event, earning a dominant technical submission victory over Dan Hooker in the very first round.

Cole Shelton - November 4, 2021

Opening up UFC 268 from Madison Square Garden, Justin Gaethje takes on Michael Chandler which promises to be fireworks for however long it lasts. Heading into the fight, Gaethje is a -210 favorite while the former Bellator champ is a +175 underdog. Ahead of the fight, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their prediction for the scrap. The pros lean towards Gaethje getting it done by KO as they trust his durability more than Chandler.

Adam D Martin - November 4, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje says he will “riot” if he doesn’t get a title shot for beating Michael Chandler at UFC 268. Gaethje returns to the Octagon after a 13-month layoff when he takes on Chandler in the UFC 268 pay-per-view main card opener. For Gaethje, this is a huge fight for him as he looks to bounce back from his submission loss to former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, while it’s equally as important for Chandler’s career. After knocking out Dan Hooker in his UFC debut, Chandler lost by knockout to Charles Oliveira in his last fight in a failed bid to become the new UFC lightweight champ. So both Gaethje and Chandler are coming off of losses heading into this bout and they both desperately need a win here if they want to remain alive in the crowded UFC lightweight title picture.

Adam D Martin - November 3, 2021

Islam Makhachev ripped Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler ahead of UFC 268, saying “everybody is tired about these guys because they’re old.” Makhachev put on arguably the best performance of his MMA career last Saturday at UFC 268 when he submitted Dan Hooker in the first round. Considering how tough and durable Hooker is — this was his first submission loss in nearly a decade — it was absolutely incredible to see Makhachev go through him like a knife through hot butter. It was the kind of win that the Russian needs in order to really cement himself as one of the top lightweights in the UFC. With a 10-1 record now in the promotion, including the nine-fight win streak that he currently rides, it’s clear that Makhachev is closing in on a title shot.

Adam D Martin - November 2, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler believes that his rival Justin Gaethje also received “Dana White privilege” from the UFC president. Chandler got the vacant title shot against Charles Oliveira back at UFC 262 in May, and Gaethje made it clear that he was not pleased as he believed it should have been him who got the title shot. However, the UFC went ahead and gave Chandler the shot instead, and he lost via TKO. With Gaethje not getting the fight, he sat on the sidelines and as of right now he’s been out of the Octagon for a full year. But this Saturday at UFC 268, he gets the chance to fight Chandler in what should be one of the best fights on the whole card.

Adam D Martin - October 14, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje says that he promises to finish Michael Chandler as “violently as possible” at UFC 268. Gaethje hasn’t competed since last October when he lost by submission to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 253. Chandler, meanwhile, is coming off of a vacant title fight TKO loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 263. When Gaethje and Chandler meet next month at UFC 268, it promises to be an action-packed fight between two of the best lightweights in the world. And as far as Gaethje goes, it will be like many of his fights: brutal and violent.

Cole Shelton - October 8, 2021

Justin Gaethje is looking for a fan-friendly fight but thinks Michael Chandler will try and wrestle him. Gaethje and Chandler are set to fight at UFC 268 on November 6 in Madison Square Garden in a highly-anticipated fight. When the fight was made, Chandler said he wouldn’t take a backward step but Gaethje doubts that will happen. Instead, he says he thinks the former Bellator lightweight champion will turn into a b***h and wrestle him.

Adam D Martin - October 1, 2021

Top contender Michael Chandler shared his prediction for the upcoming UFC lightweight title bout between Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier. Chandler knows a thing-or-two about Oliveira, considering he just fought him for the vacant lightweight belt back at UFC 262 in May. Although Chandler ended up losing via second-round TKO, he was doing well in the first round of the fight and showed that he’s one of the sport’s best lightweights despite the defeat. For his next fight, Chandler will step into the Octagon next month when he faces off with fellow top contender Justin Gaethje. The winner of Chandler vs. Gaethje could very well be in line for a title shot at 155lbs.

Drake Riggs - September 14, 2021

The highly anticipated matchup between Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler is set to go down… but it wasn’t without a brief scare. With UFC 268 on Nov. 6 taking place in New York City’s Madison Square Garden, there was reason to worry about the event happening at all due to potential COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Therefore leading Chandler to voice his opinion by sharing that he didn’t intend on getting the vaccine until it was “100 percent FDA approved.”

Adam D Martin - September 14, 2021

UFC lightweight title contender Michael Chandler says he’s “ready for violence” against divisional rival Justin Gaethje at UFC 268. Chandler meets Gaethje on November 6 at UFC 268 in what should be an absolute war between two of the best lightweights on the UFC roster. With Chandler coming off of a stoppage loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 and with Gaethje coming off of a finish defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, both fighters need to get back into the win column.

Drake Riggs - September 8, 2021

Michael Chandler isn’t backing down from his next challenge. Set to collide with the equally exciting Justin Gaethje (22-3) at UFC 268 on Nov. 6, Chandler has made his intentions very clear.

Harry Kettle - August 26, 2021

Michael Chandler has given a quick overview of who he believes to be amongst the elite of the elite in the lightweight division. Chandler has had a fascinating start to his UFC career dating all the way back to when he played the role of alternate for the Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Justin Gaethje fight. Since then he’s gone on to finish Dan Hooker before almost doing the same to Charles Oliveira, only to ultimately lose via strikes early in the second round.

Cole Shelton - August 6, 2021

Justin Gaethje doesn’t think UFC 268 will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The pay-per-view card is scheduled for November 6 and is tentatively scheduled for MSG. However, New York has implemented a required proof of vaccination for indoor dining, fitness, and entertainment events. A UFC event would fall into the latter category, so Gaethje believes that will force the promotion out of MSG.

Cole Shelton - August 6, 2021

Justin Gaethje says he’s eager to fight Michael Chandler as he doesn’t like the former Bellator lightweight champion. Gaethje and Chandler are scheduled to face one another on November 6 at UFC 268. It’s a highly-anticipated fight at lightweight where the winner could earn a title shot. For Gaethje, however, he says he’s ecstatic for the fight as it’s been a while since he fought someone he doesn’t like.