"Thought that was what it was going to be" - Michael Chandler expresses disappointment for not headlining UFC 300 alongside Conor McGregor

Michael Chandler recently voiced his regret at not headlining UFC 300 alongside Conor McGregor.

After coaching against McGregor on 'The Ultimate Fighter 31' (TUF) in early 2023, Chandler has been rumored to make a UFC comeback against the Irishman potentially. Amid continued speculation, 'The Notorious' announced his desire to fight Chandler at the UFC's annual International Fight Week pay-per-view on June 29.

Despite McGregor's declaration, UFC CEO Dana White has denied the assertions, stating that there is no officially booked fight for the former two-division champion.

Initially, there was buzz that 'Iron' and McGregor might headline the historic pay-per-view event scheduled to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on April 13. However, that prospect ultimately faded away as well.

During a recent interview on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Chandler expressed his disappointment at the prospect of missing out on the chance to compete at UFC 300:

"I’ve got to be honest with you, I thought that was what it was going to be. It makes a lot of sense. Why wouldn’t you want to headline the biggest card that UFC has ever put on? But ultimately, it’s not and we stay patient, we stay training, we stay ready."

Chandler added:

"Yeah, there's definitely a part of me [that is disappointed]. UFC 300, it's a monumentos card it's the UFC putting on 300 shows."

Check out Michael Chandler's comments below (16:45):

'Iron' last competed at UFC 281 in November 2022, where he suffered a submission defeat against Dustin Poirier.

Notably, Poirier was also McGregor's last opponent, although 'The Notorious' has been sidelined due to a leg injury sustained during their trilogy fight at UFC 264 in July 2021.

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Michael Chandler discusses whether Conor McGregor responded to his WWE promo

Michael Chandler recently opened up about whether Conor McGregor reacted to his WWE promo.

Chandler's recent endeavor to entice 'The Notorious' back into the octagon unfolded at this week's WWE Monday Night RAW in Anaheim, California. 'Iron' delivered a passionate promo, presenting a direct challenge to McGregor to bring their long-debated showdown to fruition.

During the same interview with Ariel Helwani, Chandler was questioned about McGregor's reaction to his viral RAW promo. The 37-year-old American disclosed that their latest interaction took place during their stint on 'TUF':

"We don't. We've never DM'd or any of that kind of stuff our interactions have been on the show or when we've kept past each other or in passing. I saw some people who said he liked it, or he responded, or whatever it may be honestly, I haven't really been on it." [8:00]