Michael Chandler: McGregor Announced Fight at 185 Pounds to 'Establish Dominance'

When Conor McGregor revealed that his long-awaited bout against Michael Chandler would be contested at middleweight, it raised eyebrows throught the mixed martial arts community.

After all, neither McGregor nor Chandler has competed at 185 pounds during their respective careers. Chandler has a theory on why the Irish superstar chose that weight class.

"In his mind, he can't fight at 170 [pounds], because I called him out at 170," Chandler told ESPN. "He had to say 185. ... He always wants to establish dominance, to make people think that I am less than him, and that's fine. I'll take that all day long, because I'm confident in myself, and I don't have an ego.

"I have no problem with what people say. I have no problem with people's opinions. Everybody's got an opinion, and who cares? ... I'll take that 'back seat' to him the entire time, and if he thinks he's taking a fight against a lesser man, then so be it. He'll find out on June 29.”

Chandler and McGregor served as opposing coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 31,” and it was initially expected that the two would square off at some point late in 2023. When that didn’t come to fruition, the next targeted date was UFC 300 in April. While the fight has been delayed on multiple occasions, Chandler is confident that the International Fight Week date will happen as planned.

"We all know it's never 100 percent officially confirmed until we actually step in the Octagon, but obviously my team has been in touch with the UFC," Chandler said. "June 29 is what I'm preparing for. I'm leaving my family to head down to Florida to get into fight camp -- the fight camp that has been looming now for a year."