Conor McGregor weighs in on what could have been his next opponent.
It’s been over 1,000 days since the UFC superstar has been in the cage, but McGregor’s been making the media rounds ahead of a potential return in 2025. Last summer, McGregor was scheduled to face Michael Chandler in a massive pay-per-view main event at UFC 303 but for the first time in his UFC career, McGregor would withdraw due to a broken toe injury, living to fight another day.
Instead of waiting many more months for McGregor, former Bellator Champion Chandler has decided to rematch #2 lightweight contender Charles Oliveira in the meantime with the side mission potentially leading to a title shot, should Chandler get his hand raised at UFC 309.
McGregor: ‘I’d Love To See Chandler Deal With It’
The lightweight belt is in the rear-view mirror for Chandler as he seeks revenge on Oliveira for TKO’ing him in their first fight at UFC 252, taking the throne and Chandler’s dream of becoming UFC Champion. However, Oliveira vs. Chandler I in 2022 was anything but one-sided as Chandler nearly knocked out the Brazilian in the opening round before succumbing to punches in the second.
“[Oliveira] recovered in that last fight, but Chandler has a bit more knowledge of that now,” McGregor said of the upcoming fight on Duelbits. “I’d love to see Chandler deal with it, to be honest. we have to settle this, me and the little fool of a thing. Let’s see how it goes. It is what it is, whatever is the case.”
There’s no guarantee, win or lose, that Michael Chandler will be McGregor’s return opponent but like McGregor said, we’ll see what the future holds for both fighters.
McGregor Says Crawford Has Balls ‘The Size Of A Magali Tiger’
Outside of Chandler and other MMA stars he could choose from, McGregor revealed he was in talks to take on a boxer in WBC, WBO Welterweight Champion Terence Crawford (41-0) at some point. Though, it wasn’t your average one-fight deal where UFC star crosses over into boxing as we’ve seen with McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather before in 2017.
No, this blockbuster as McGregor describes was supposed to be a two-fight deal, the first in MMA and the rematch in the boxing ring – Bud’s bread and butter.
“Crawford is very slick. He also has a wrestling pedigree,” McGregor said of the boxing champion. “You know, they’re always talking to me about bouts. I’ve already boxed a boxer. A boxer in MMA is me. I generate the most. So, I’m talking back-and-forth. It’s like a two-fight deal. He rings up Crawford in front of me the day after the fight. Crawford gets on the phone. I said, Crawford, they’re talking to me here about you and me. A two-fight deal, MMA, of course, boxing, second.
“I said, I know you have an extensive background and balls the size of a Machali tiger… They’re asking for a fight. It’s gonna be hundreds of millions on the line. What’s up?”
Kicks? On Second Thought…
Unfortunately, like most UFC vs. boxing bouts, the crossover was too good to be true with McGregor revealing why Crawford wasn’t willing to throw down in the Octagon (and it’s completely understandable).
“He goes, ‘I don’t wanna take a kick… Oh, I don’t fancy taking a kick off Conor McGregor’, he said. So, you gotta respect that.”
Conor McGregor says there was talks about a two-fight deal between him and Terence Crawford, one MMA fight and one boxing fight 👀🥊
"[Crawford said] 'I don't fancy taking a kick off Conor McGregor'."
🎥 @Duelbits #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/fDScAthgZD
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) September 27, 2024
