Chandler: McGregor should fight me, move 'forward' with career
Michael Chandler says Conor McGregor would be wise to prioritize getting back into the gym - and, eventually, the Octagon - after being found liable for sexual assault.
That also means the UFC lightweight contender is still optimistic he could square off with McGregor in a megafight in 2025.
"I don't know the legal ramifications, I don't know what all that stuff looks like. I do know after something like this, if I was in that position, obviously the last thing I would want to do is not be training and not be moving forward toward a common goal," Chandler said Wednesday on "The Ariel Helwani Show."
Last week, a civil court jury in Ireland found McGregor liable for sexual assault in a case against Nikita Hand, who said the fighter "brutally raped and battered" her in a Dublin hotel room in December 2018. Dublin's High Court ordered McGregor to pay Hand around $257,000 in damages. McGregor testified that he had consensual sex with Hand and said afterward he planned to appeal the verdict.
Chandler, who was scheduled to fight McGregor at UFC 303 in June before the Irishman withdrew with a broken toe, called the sexual assault case "a horrible position" to be in "for him and for everyone involved."
"I do think the best thing that (McGregor) can do, most likely, obviously, is to get back moving toward a common goal," Chandler said. "A man or a woman needs a common goal to continue to work toward in order to continue to build ourselves up. Why not fight me? Why not be training to fight me?"
McGregor and Chandler coached "The Ultimate Fighter 31" in early 2023 and were expected to meet in the cage later that year, but various delays pushed the matchup to mid-2024 (and then McGregor's injury put it on hold indefinitely).
Chandler sat on the sidelines for nearly two years waiting for a fight with McGregor to materialize, but he finally returned to action at UFC 309 earlier this month, losing a unanimous decision in a rematch with former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira.
The 38-year-old doesn't intend to be idle for too long after the Oliveira loss, saying he ideally wants to fight McGregor in the first half of 2025.
"Middle of next year, International Fight Week, before that, as soon as possible," Chandler said. "I'm ready to get back into training camp right after Jan. 1, and we can make that fight happen ASAP."