- Conor McGregor is back in the USADA testing pool and can fight next year
- Irishman was scheduled to face Michael Chandler next but he has had to wait
- The haters will never forgive tarnished Conor Benn, but why this is a fight we just have to see – The Hook
Michael Chandler has admitted his frustration at the lack of movement of his planned fight with Conor McGregor.
The American has had to bide his time, waiting for McGregor to re-enter the USADA testing pool, having all but been given the golden ticket to fight him by coaching opposite him on The Ultimate Fighter this summer.
He believes McGregor is ‘trying to wait him out’ in a bid to get in his head.
‘I’ve seen Conor talk about other opponents,’ Chandler told the MMA Hour. ‘I’ve seen Conor talk about different dates. I’ve seen Conor talk, completely dismiss me and act like to fight with me isn’t happening.
‘These are all ways that these guys try to get inside people’s heads. Unluckily for them, your boy’s bulletproof, alright? So we’re good. So we’re staying with the plan.
Michael Chandler has been training for a year and is frustrated by the delays
‘We’re right where we need to be. I’ve had a year, a year-plus now to think about and visualize knocking Conor out, watching all of his tapes, seeing the training footage that’s coming out. I see that he’s training, I see that he’s coming back.’
He went on: ‘Obviously he joined USADA, got back in the USADA testing pool. He’s not doing that unless he’s actually coming back.
‘So he’s trying to wait me out, smoke me out, but I’m going to be waiting here, man.
‘The greatest comeback in combat sports history, that road goes through one man — and his name is Michael Chandler.’
Chandler was defeated by Dustin Poirier last November and has lost three of his last four, while McGregor has one win since 2016.
The American is usually active and the period of inactivity has, he admits, caused him angst at times.
He continued: ‘[Have I been] frustrated at times? Absolutely. Annoyed? Maybe a little bit here and there. Because we get that rush, we love fighting, we love competing. I do train a lot so it is hard to train — even me, even being known as the guy who trains a lot and I live this life, it is hard to have your training but not have that carrot dangled in front of you and that light at the end of the tunnel of an actual date.
McGregor is set to return against Ultimate Fighter rival Chandler next year
Conor McGregor is back in the USADA testing pool and will return to action next year
‘Anytime I find myself being frustrated, I believe I’m always able to go back to my north star that, hey, it’s going to work out the way it’s going to, just like me coming to the UFC.’
When pushed for details, Chandler admitted he is still in the dark about when he and McGregor might lock horns.
‘I’m sorry, but I just don’t have any information’, he said. Obviously that [UFC 300] would be a dream scenario. That’s when I would like to fight, where I would like to fight, who I would want to fight.
‘Chandler vs Conor is happening. I don’t have a date or a location or a UFC number for you, but it’s definitely going to happen next year.’
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