McGregor returns as 'TUF' instructor vs. Chandler

Conor McGregor's return has actually been established, as the previous UFC double champ will certainly coach against lightweight celebrity Michael Chandler on the following season of "The Ultimate Boxer" before encountering him in the Octagon.

UFC head of state Dana White announced McGregor and Chandler as the trainers on social networks Saturday. No date or place was revealed for the McGregor-Chandler fight, which will likely occur at 170 pounds.

Chandler informed ESPN's Brett Okamoto on Saturday the high-stakes spell must take place in September.

"That would make the most sense to me," said Chandler. "Clearly, Conor is driven by pay-per-view buys. You want to maintain that tension [from the truth show] as close to the fight as possible. You begin pushing it to the end of the year, other big fights are occurring ... September would be definitely best."

The 31st period of "The Ultimate Competitor," which will air on ESPN and ESPN+, will certainly run from May 30 to Aug. 15.

McGregor, who coached on the fact series in 2015 against Urijah Faber, has not completed given that damaging his left leg in a fight with Dustin Poirier in July 2021. Chandler has actually been asking for a fight with McGregor for more than a year.

McGregor is not presently in the U.S. Anti-Doping Company's medicine screening swimming pool, the company stated in a declaration Saturday. Prior to he can battle, USADA claimed McGregor would certainly require to be in the screening swimming pool for at the very least 6 months and also have two negative tests.

A former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion, McGregor (22-6) was the very first boxer to hold 2 separate weight department titles in UFC simultaneously. The Irish-born competitor holds the fastest surface in UFC title battle background, a 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo for the featherweight belt in 2015, however the 34-year-old has actually gone down two straight as well as 3 of his past 4.

Chandler (23-8) is a previous three-time Bellator light-weight champion. The Missouri citizen pertained to UFC as a freelance in 2021 as well as has actually currently faced several of the best boxers in the promotion's 155-pound division. The 36-year old is coming off a loss to Poirier at UFC 281 in November as well as has shed 3 of his last 4 rounds with a Knockout of the Year triumph in May against Tony Ferguson combined in.

Chandler vows to take the battle to McGregor, going as much to forecast a stoppage in the highly-anticipated clash.

"I'm going to get in his face as soon as possible, make him take an in reverse step as soon as possible," Chandler told ESPN. "He's mosting likely to feel my presence from the very beginning, and from there it's any place the fight takes us. If I wish to select him up and put him down, I'll pick him up and put him down and also place a whipping on him as well as obtain a sub that way. I believe I get a finish of Conor McGregor in the 2nd round, that's my 'Mystic Mike' forecast."