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Dana White Pulling Out an Unexpected Arrangement for Conor McGregor’s Return Against Michael Chandler Is What This MMA Legend Says Should Happen

Published 01/10/2024, 6:25 AM EST

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After more than two years away from action, Conor McGregor was finally going to make his return at International Fight Week against Michael Chandler. Although we don’t have any intricate details about the fight, MMA legend Chael Sonnen recently opened up on the importance of the UFC making some arrangements for the Irishman on his return.

Conor McGregor’s path to UFC return had been uncertain for a while. But following the end of USADA’s partnership with the UFC, the Irishman finally announced his return date. However, Chael Sonnen appears to be in doubt about some of the details of McGregor’s return fight. Let’s see what he had to say.

Chael Sonnen claims only two aspects of Conor McGregor’s return are certain for now

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A few days before Conor McGregor announced the Michael Chandler fight, ‘The Notorious’ mentioned that he could make his return to boxing against Manny Pacquiao. This led to more speculations about his return taking place inside the squared circle. But then again, on New Year’s Eve, McGregor came up with the Michael Chandler fight (at 185 lbs) announcement. This has made Chael Sonnen a little skeptical about some of the things that Conor McGregor had to say.

“Our source is Conor McGregor, who might be the world’s worst source. I mean, it was 4 days earlier, he told the world through the same platform known as X, that he was going to be boxing Manny Pacquiao next. We really can’t take Conor on his word too much,” said Chael Sonnen.

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However, the former 3-time UFC title challenger believes two things about Conor McGregor’s return have been clarified. The date is fixed, and the opponent is sorted out. But there are still a couple of more things that are yet to be confirmed.

“We got two pieces of the story – we got the opponent being Chandler and we’ve got the date being June 29th. What we don’t have is the weight class and, most importantly, the rounds,” Sonnen further stated. He turned his attention to the role the number of rounds could play in that fight. Let’s see what that’s all about!

Will Dana White put McGregor in a three or five-round fight?

‘The Notorious’ has had a string of losses over the last few years. Since 2018, Conor McGregor has won only one fight while losing three of them. Although fans are expecting to see him fight, Chael Sonnen is not hoping to see anything out of the ordinary from the former double champion against Michael Chandler. He further stated, “I don’t know that we could expect a lot from Conor McGregor, who’s returning. It’s one of those really tough sports for anybody.”

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With that in mind, ‘The American Gangster’ suggested that Dana White should think about McGregor’s time inside the Octagon. A three-round fight is when the Irishman works best, and a three-round fight on his return would favor him. “But if you return to a three-round environment, which this fight is eligible for considering it’s not a world title fight… Three rounds changes everything and I hope that the UFC takes that under consideration,” Chael Sonnen added.

Watch This Story: Conor McGregor Beefs With Nate Diaz, Dustin Poirier, Joe Rogan & Tony Ferguson On The Same Day

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July 29th is still a long way to go, which means we could still see a lot more details coming out about the McGregor vs. Chandler fight. The UFC has often booked five-round fights between two high-profile names. So there is a chance that McGregor finds himself in this situation, given he has been fighting only in main events since 2015. It remains to be seen how the UFC CEO navigates his promotion’s biggest star’s comeback.

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Written by:

Himanga Mahanta

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I am a UFC writer at EssentiallySports, and my passion for MMA and a deep understanding of its intricacies have allowed me to churn out more than 1000 articles. I have covered numerous UFC events and fighters, with the aim of bringing my readers closer to the action and the athletes they admire. I have developed a knack for providing analytical coverage of breaking stories from the world of MMA.
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Edited by:

Yeswanth Praveen