Israel Adesanya highlights why Michael Chandler "deserves" to be Conor McGregor's next opponent after UFC 329
Israel Adesanya has made a case for Michael Chandler to be Conor McGregor's first fight back after the Irishman's UFC 329 injury debacle.
Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor were long involved in a feud that many expected would culminate in an MMA fight between them in the UFC's famed octagon.
Nevertheless, the dream matchup, which many fans envisioned as a likely barnburner, didn't come to be.
McGregor's fellow combat sports megastar Israel Adesanya has now suggested that the aforementioned feud wouldn't be for naught. "The Last Stylebender" has called for McGregor to fight Chandler next.
Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler -- "The Notorious" returned against Max Holloway rather than "Iron"
Conor McGregor's most recent octagon appearance witnessed him suffer a leg injury in his rematch against Max Holloway at UFC 329 on July 11.
It led to McGregor's being unable to keep fighting and losing the much-awaited welterweight showdown via TKO in a little over a minute into the very first round.
"The Notorious" one had defeated Holloway by way of unanimous decision in their first encounter, which was a featherweight matchup back when they were rising stars in 2013.
Holloway has called for a trilogy fight against McGregor, but the latter is reportedly out with a right knee injury. The timeline of the 37-year-old Irishman's return remains unclear for now.
Speaking of which, many fans have pointed out that "Iron" Michael Chandler was to be McGregor's comeback opponent back in 2024. His UFC 329 fight was his first since suffering a left leg injury against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021.
However, McGregor did memorably coach Season 31 of the UFC's TUF (The Ultimate Fighter) reality show opposite longtime UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler in 2023.
They were booked to clash at welterweight, in the UFC 303 headliner in June 2024, but a toe injury ruled McGregor out. The McGregor vs. Chandler fight was postponed and eventually scrapped.
Israel Adesanya underlines why Michael Chandler deserves to be Conor McGregor's next opponent
On the Precision podcast, hosted by former UFC flyweight champion Demetrious "Mighty Mouse" Johnson and former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, the duo addressed Conor McGregor's UFC 329 injury.
Johnson, who's a retired MMA great, seemed to concur with Adesanya that McGregor's return against Holloway was a tough comeback fight after the Irishman's five-year layoff.
Moreover, "Izzy" alluded to the backstory that serves as the perfect foundation for a McGregor vs. Chandler fight next.
Chandler, a 40-year-old veteran American MMA star, suffered a first-round TKO loss against Mauricio Ruffy in their lightweight matchup at UFC Freedom 250 last month.
Also, Chandler later signaled that he's moving up to welterweight. He's currently on a four-fight losing streak, whereas McGregor is on a three-fight losing streak.
Israel Adesanya, who himself made waves with a major change recently, notably indicated that Chandler is the only matchup that makes sense for McGregor, provided the latter chooses to return to the octagon.
Adesanya stated, "I say, I mean, if he (Conor McGregor) does decide to come back later on, (Michael) Chandler would be the only fight that makes sense. 'Cause they -- he kind of owes Chandler that fight. He honeyd**ked him for like, two, three years while Chandler was waiting for the big money fight."
For context, a number of fans often criticize Chandler for having refrained from competing in the octagon from late 2022 to late 2024, a time period when his potential fight against McGregor was expected to come to fruition but didn't.
Adesanya added, "So now, after The Ultimate Fighter, after all those times, it'd be good for them to kind of settle the score. 'Cause they even have a little bit of -- not beef -- but they have, they've got some heat there. Some heat there. So that would be the fight I think he should come back to."
Watch Israel Adesanya and Demetrious Johnson discuss Conor McGregor's potential next fight and more below (*comments at the 9:50-minute mark of the video):
