UFC president Dana White reveals why Michael Chandler vs Tony Ferguson wasn't booked

UFC newcomer and former two-time Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler will have to wait a little longer for his inaugural UFC outing - and it won't be against Tony Ferguson.

While speculation was rife that Chandler might square off against former UFC interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson, it was announced earlier in the week that ‘El Cucuy’ would take on Brazilian Charles Oliveira at UFC 256.

Tony Ferguson (@TonyFergusonXT) will face Charles Oliveira (@CharlesDoBronxs) at UFC 256 on Dec. 12 in Las Vegas, per Dana White (@danawhite). Ferguson gets his wish to fight again before the end of 2020. Huge addition to that Dec. 12 event.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) November 21, 2020

In the UFC 255 post-fight press conference, Dana White revealed the reason why Tony Ferguson is fighting Charles Oliveira instead of Michael Chandler.

“He [Chandler] just cut weight in Abu Dhabi [at UFC 254] so he could not do it [fight Ferguson]. We had to roll and make the fights and we will see what happens next for Chandler”, stated UFC President Dana White.

Dana White on why Michael Chandler isn’t fighting in December Bc Chandler just cut weight in Abu Dhabi #UFC255 pic.twitter.com/GJMJ6mmmRG

— Helen Yee (@HelenYeeSports) November 22, 2020

Chandler had, however, called out Conor McGregor when negotiations for the Irishman's bout against Dustin Poirier were progressing slowly.

Dana White’s comments, therefore, might suggest that Chandler is waiting on the perfect opponent for his UFC debut. The shortlisted fighter, for now, remains a mystery.

Ferguson, on the other hand, will be looking to put his devastating loss against Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 behind him with a win against Oliveira.

Oliveira is on a 7 fight win streak and will look to add Tony Ferguson’s name to the list of fighters he has beaten.

Michael Chandler's future unclear after missed Tony Ferguson match-up

Michael Chandler’s first order of business in the UFC was to serve as a backup fighter for the UFC 254 main event bout between Justin Gaethje and champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

However, neither fighter was injured or missed weight and the fight took place as scheduled.

Khabib would win the fight via a second-round submission and would then shock the MMA community by announcing his retirement.

Michael Chandler, on the other hand, travelled back the US having made the most of the media attention that the event generated.

It remains to be seen who he fights next.