‘Now It’s Time to Move On’- Michael Chandler Says He Will Take Over Lightweight Division at UFC 262 After Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Retirement

Michael Chandler is set to fight Charles Oliveira in the main event of the UFC 262 pay-per-view. The lightweight title will be up for grabs as the two top contenders battle out for it. Former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is now officially retired, and the vacant gold is there for the taking.

Recently, in an interview with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto, ‘Iron’ shared his take on Nurmagomedov’s retirement. The former multiple-time Bellator MMA lightweight champion is confident to start a new era in the 155 lbs division of the UFC.

“I mean, I mean, truthfully, you know, when you get into this sport, you want the biggest fights, you want the biggest stages and you want you want the biggest challenges athletically, there is no secret Khabib is the biggest challenge the hardest puzzle to solve,” said Chandler.

“Even for a guy like myself, who I fancy myself, a pretty darn good wrestler, he’s still an animal when it comes to the ground game, the sound bow the top pressure- just mauling people. So that was that was something I wanted to experience,” he added.

Michael Chandler wants to start his era on UFC 262

Chandler also said that everybody wanted to have ‘The Eagle‘ back in action, including himself. But he doesn’t want to indulge in the thoughts of what could have been. ‘Iron‘ vows fans to move on as he wants to mark his reign at the top of the UFC’s lightweight division.

“He was a great champion. But now it’s time to move on. So there’s, there’s still a little bit of that disappointment, but from here on out, it’s going to be my division when I beat Charles Oliveira May 15,” he added further.

Chandler will have a tough test in hand as ‘Do Bronx’ is flying at the moment. But he is confident to prove himself as the no.1 lightweight on the planet and write his chapter. ‘Iron’ believes if he can mark his reign at the top, he might lure Nurmagomedov back to the Octagon. The former champion previously said he will always keep a close eye on how things unfold in the UFC.

What did you make of Michael Chandler’s recent comments? Share your thoughts.

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