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Michael Chandler lost to Charles Oliveira on his first opportunity at the UFC lightweight belt at UFC 262 last week.
After a dominant performance in the first round, Michael Chandler succumbed to an early second-round onslaught by Charles Oliveira and lost the bout via TKO. Ever-gracious in defeat, 'Iron' Mike gave a frame-by-frame breakdown of the fight with MMA On Point.
Michael Chandler explained how the first thought he had in the octagon was to occupy the center and go on the attack straightaway:
"Right away, we want to take the center of the octagon... right away. I think Charles Oliveira and myself are both that guy who wants to take the center of the octagon. So, I wanted to beat him to the center and I do... He starts throwing kicks, opens up with the knees. That low calf-kick he threw right away, we knew that was something he was probably going to start throwing, so right away I want to put heat on him."
Speaking about the action when the fight hit the ground, Michael Chandler pointed out that the guillotine choke he had on Charles Oliveira 'came out of necessity.' He also cleared the air on what many were saying was a mistake; that was to give Charles Oliveira his back. Michael Chandler explained why he made that decision during the fight:
"A lot of people said it was ill-advised. Everybody said you should never give Charles Oliveira your back. I do agree. I think Charles Oliveira is one of the greatest grapplers in the world, on the ground. But I get to this position a lot... Hands are up, neck is tucked, chin is tucked. He goes for a kind of body lock there and he starts going over top... this is where we do the infamous slam. Also ill-advised, but entertaining. Win, lose, or draw, I have never been in a boring fight."
Michael Chandler revealed the hardest part of the fight
In the first round, Michael Chandler came close to knocking Charles Oliveira out and winning the title. However, things did not go to plan for Chandler as Oliveira got out of the tricky situation in time.
Regarding the almost-KO, Chandler said:
"Here's where we get right back into his face, hitting with a jab, body, hook, and then right hand 'bang!' on the top of the temple. This right here is probably the hardest part of this entire fight to watch, because Charles Oliveira is essentially almost out here... He almost looks like he's out, goes back to pull in guard. And here's where the age-old question of 'Should you let him up, should you just let him back to the feet'. I think the right decision here would have been to let him up."
Michael Chandler further explained that he had realized that the takedown towards the end of the first round was not going anywhere. According to the 35-year-old, he would have to wait out the round and start from scratch in the next.
However, Charles Oliveira made a flying start to the second round and did not let Chandler realize his plans. The Brazilian quickly capitalized on a mistake by the ex-Bellator champion and finished the fight.
Speaking about the finish, Chandler said:
"I think Charles Oliveira also read when I go for that body, I kind of left my hand, he catches me with a hook, and here's the onslaught is happening. You're trying to get away from it. Dan Miragliotta has no choice but to stop the fight."
"He lands a hook, drops me, and that's my fault. I should have come up with a jab, I should have come up with a jab as defense instead of throwing the right hand by itself."
Watch: Crowd reaction as Charles Oliveira brutally knocks out Michael Chandler at UFC 262
Michael Chandler pointed out that he was not 'knocked out stiff' at the end of the fight, but gave due credit to Charles Oliveira for the win.
Watch the full breakdown by Michael Chandler below:
Also Read: 3 logical next opponents for Michael Chandler after his UFC 262 loss
