LAS VEGAS – It hasn’t been made official by the UFC, but [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] is already calling his upcoming fight against [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] a No. 1 contender fight for the lightweight title.
Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) is confident a win in his rematch against Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC), which goes down in November at UFC 309, will get him a title shot at 155 pounds despite being 1-3 in his past four trips to the octagon.
“Here we are: Now I’m fighting Charles, No. 1 contender fight,” Oliveira told reporters at UFC 306. “I’ve always wanted to chase the title. That’s always been my goal. I beat Charles and if Conor can get his house in order, finally, then me and him can finish that. If not, I’ll go beat Islam (Makhachev).”
Chandler has been waiting for a fight against Conor McGregor to come to fruition for well over a year. He hasn’t fought since losing to Dustin Poirier in November 2022. To many’s surprise, the UFC recently announced Chandler was moving on from the McGregor bout and fighting Oliveira.
Both Chandler and Oliveira fought back in 2021 for the vacant UFC lightweight title. After a wild, back and forth affair, Oliveira stopped Chandler in the second round.
“Charles is that guy, man,” Chandler said. “I’ve got so much respect for him. I think he knows that, and I know he’s got respect for me. I want to compete against him. I’ve never been a guy that looks back and says, ‘I want that one back. I want to right that wrong,’ but when these rematches happen, I’m excited for them because I know the mistakes that I’ve made, I know where I was in my mind, and I’ve matured so much as a man and as a fighter since that fight in Houston, Texas.
“That’s part of it, too. Maybe this is the way it was supposed to be the entire time. Maybe I was supposed to lose to Charles to then have a redemption story to beat Charles and then get my title shot to finally become UFC champion and cement myself as the No. 1 guy in the world.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.