McGregor Begs For The Chandler Fight – ‘It’s You, I’ll See You’

December 11, 2024

1 month

McGregor Begs For The Chandler Fight - 'It's You, I'll See You'

Conor McGregor appears increasingly desperate to return to the UFC as he reiterated his desire to face Michael Chandler.

McGregor is currently facing significant scrutiny over his UFC career after he was found liable in a sexual assault civil lawsuit. Nikita Hand alleged that McGregor had sexually assaulted her in a 2018 incident at a Dublin hotel room. McGregor was found liable and ordered to pay her roughly $258,440. McGregor’s friend, James Lawrence, was also named in the legal case. But he was cleared, leaving McGregor to face the brunt of everything. He has also been ordered to pay Hand’s legal costs, which are equivalent to approximately $158,000.

McGregor’s Brand

Reports indicate that McGregor immediately went to Dublin after the findings of the lawsuit, following mass criticism over his presence in Ireland. McGregor still has two fights left on his UFC contract. But there are doubts about whether fans will see him fight again. He pulled out of his UFC 303 fight against Chandler, which was set to go ahead on June 29. McGregor indicated that he suffered a broken toe. He then suggested that he would be fighting Dan Hooker on February 1 in Saudi Arabia. Hooker did indeed confirm that there were talks going on.

However, the UFC has not made an official announcement. Dana White has also recently said that if McGregor does ever fight again, it will likely be later next year. The Irishman has also suffered significant financial losses outside of the Octagon in response to the lawsuit. The Hitman video game franchise has parted ways with McGregor. Meanwhile, the Proper Number 12 Irish Whiskey brand will no longer use McGregor in its marketing. The airports in Dublin and Cork have also responded by saying they will not sell McGregor’s drinks. Irish politician Ruth Coppinger has also indicated that she is not opposed to a boycott of McGregor’s products.

“Obviously I feel people already are boycotting his products and there has been a massive commercial backlash for Conor McGregor. People shouldn’t support Conor McGregor, his products nor his premises. I am surprised though that retailers have pulled his products because normally something like this doesn’t affect a person. So the backlash Conor McGregor is getting is significant – retailers and sponsors are reacting and long may it continue,” Coppinger said

McGregor Vs. Chandler

Although there is still uncertainty around McGregor, he has once again indicated that he wants to face Chandler. Their rivalry has been brewing since their days as rival coaches on the TUF 31 series. Chandler won the team challenge, while McGregor got his revenge in the individual coach’s challenge. Chandler responded by hinting that he still wanted the fight.

But whether there is enough demand to see it is another matter. Chandler recently faced Charles Oliveira in a rematch at UFC 309. He came up short, losing to Olivera again, meaning he has only secured two wins out of his six UFC fights. The initial live gate for the McGregor-Chandler fight was expected to go over $20 million. However, the recent news of McGregor’s lawsuit leaves uncertainty over whether McGregor can still command a huge fan base. And that will become clearer moving forward.