Tag: Michael Chandler

Dan Hooker takes umbrage with Michael Chandler calling for BMF title after UFC 309

Dan Hooker isn’t a fan of Michael Chandler throwing his name into the hat for a BMF title fight.

[autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] isn’t a fan of [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] throwing his name into the hat for a BMF title fight.

Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) was initially gunning for a title fight with a win over Charles Oliveira Saturday at UFC 309, but after suffering a unanimous decision loss to the Brazilian at Madison Square Garden, the 38-year-old turned his attention to the BMF title, which Max Holloway currently holds.

“Hey, I had a bunch of callouts, I was supposed to show up tonight, do my job, and win the fight,” Chandler said post-fight at UFC 309. “Forget calling out Islam, Charles is doing that next. Maybe Max Holloway for the BMF belt.

“Or, Conor McGregor, if you can ever get your house back in order while us real professionals have been keeping the octagon warm, we’re wondering where you’ve been, Conor. Come back and beat me, if you can!”

Hooker (24-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC), who since losing to Chandler in January 2021 has won four of his past six, criticized Chandler’s callout, and thinks the fans should decide who gets to fight for the BMF title.

“I don’t see Chandler calling for the BMF,” Hooker told Submission Radio. “Why does everyone keep throwing their hands up for the BMF? It’s not up to us. It’s not our title. It’s the BMF. The BMF title is for the fans. It’s up to the fans. People need to stop calling out for the BMF title, brother. That’s the fans’ title – it’s their fun.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Overreaction Time: UFC 309 and Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson deliver the not-so-goods

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” covering Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic, Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson, and more.

The time for overreacting is here!

Check out the latest episode of “Overreaction Time” at noon ET/9 a.m. PT as host Simon Samano and MMA Junkie reporter Farah Hannoun debate these “overreactions” on the following topics in mixed martial arts:

  • [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] was a meaningless UFC heavyweight title fight.
  • UFC 309 proved Jon Jones would lose to [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag].
  • Things are about to get ugly between Jon Jones and [autotag]Dana White[/autotag].
  • [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] should stop acting so desperate to fight [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag].
  • [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]’s UFC 309 performance was a huge disappointment.
  • [autotag]Jake Paul [/autotag]vs. [autotag]Mike Tyson[/autotag]: What the hell was that?
  • The UFC totally redeemed itself with the UFC 310/UFC Tampa shakeup.

Watch the full episode in the video above.

Daniel Cormier all for Michael Chandler’s callout of Conor McGregor after UFC 309

Daniel Cormier thinks Michael Chandler is smart for going after Conor McGregor again.

[autotag]Daniel Cormier[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] is smart for going after Conor McGregor again.

Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) called out McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) after suffering a dominant decision loss to Charles Oliveira in Saturday’s UFC 309 co-main event at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Despite now coming off back-to-back losses to Dustin Poirier and Oliveira, Cormier doesn’t see Chandler’s chances of getting his fight with McGregor rebooked decreasing. In fact, he thinks it strengthens his case.

“I said this before the fight: I thought Chandler had a better chance of getting the McGregor fight if he lost,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “He lost that fight. He showed that you can hurt him, but he also showed how tough and durable he is.

“Michael Chandler doesn’t need to win all the time. He’s past that, in terms of who he is as a fighter. He’s past that. He once again won, even though he lost. He’ll get the McGregor fight, and it’s going to be massive, and I’m all for it.”

McGregor withdrew from his originally scheduled bout vs. Chandler at UFC 303 in June due to a broken pinky toe. When asked about McGregor’s status during the UFC 309 post-fight news conference, Dana White reiterated that it likely won’t be until late next year, meaning Chandler would likely have to wait quite a while once again.

“There is no doubt – Conor hits me up all the time, Conor wants to fight,” White said. “I told you guys he probably wasn’t going to fight in 2024 and he didn’t. He’s going to fight in 2025, probably at the end of the year. If it is earlier, that’s good for all of us.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Conor McGregor reacts to Michael Chandler’s loss at UFC 309

Conor McGregor was complimentary of “mad little fellow” Michael Chandler after his UFC 309 loss to Charles Oliveira.

[autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] has offered his first reaction to long-scheduled opponent [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] losing to Charles Oliveira at UFC 309.

In a since-deleted post on X, former two-division champion McGregor was complimentary toward Chandler for the Fight of the Night affair he put on with Oliveira that ultimately ended in a unanimous decision defeat at Madison Square Garden in New York.

“Cut Michael Chandler!” McGregor wrote. “Just kidding, good fight. Mad little fellow is Michael. I like em’!”

Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) made his return from a two-year layoff for the rematch with Oliveira at UFC 309. He spent all that time healthy, waiting for a matchup with McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) to materialize after they were opposing coaches on Season 31 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Following the fight, Chandler got on the microphone in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan and made a passionate call for McGregor to come back to the octagon and fight him.

McGregor hasn’t seen action since suffering a broken leg in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in July 2021. He was scheduled to fight Chandler at UFC 303 in July but withdrew on less than three weeks’ notice due to a toe injury.

UFC CEO Dana White was asked about rebooking McGregor vs. Chandler at the UFC 309 post-fight news conference on Saturday but was noncommittal, stating that he expects McGregor won’t fight until late 2025.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Spinning Back Clique REPLAY: UFC 309 fallout, Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall, Paul-Tyson, more

On the latest episode of “Spinning Back Clique,” the panel discusses Jon Jones’ win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 309, Jake Paul’s victory over Mike Tyson, and more.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts.

This week’s panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Mike Bohn and Danny Segura will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate the following topics:

  • [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] has made the heavyweight division quite interesting, to say the least. The living legend returned to the cage Saturday, successfully defending his UFC heavyweight title against [autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag] in the main event of UFC 309. Now it seems Jones has little to no intention of unifying the belt with interim champion [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag], and is calling for a bout against fellow star and light heavyweight champion [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag]. What happens now? Will Jones give in and fight Aspinall, or will he retire from MMA? We discuss and analyze everything surrounding the UFC 309 main event.
  • Jones wasn’t the only one who made headlines at UFC 309, which also saw [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] defeat [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] in their highly anticipated rematch; [autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag] continue his unbeaten run in MMA; [autotag]Mauricio Ruffy[/autotag] follow up on an impressive UFC debut; and much more. We discuss and highlight some of the other key results outside the UFC 309 main event.
  • Netflix debuted its first live sports event with a boxing match between popular influencer [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] and 58-year-old former champion [autotag]Mike Tyson[/autotag]. The event left plenty to discuss – some good, some bad. We react to Paul’s win over Tyson, along with Netflix’s jump into live sports.
  • To close out the show, we review some of the smaller news items outside the two big weekend events, including the booking of [autotag]Shavkat Rakmonov[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Ian Machado Garry[/autotag], which serves as the new co-main event of UFC 310; the return of [autotag]Colby Covington[/autotag], who fills in for Machado Garry to fight [autotag]Joaquim Buckley[/autotag] in the main event of UFC on ESPN 63 on Dec. 14; and the implementation of the old UFC gloves – sort of.

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Dana White: Michael Chandler has home in UFC ‘until he decides to retire’

UFC CEO Dana White had only positive comments about Michael Chandler after his loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 309.

NEW YORK – [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] doesn’t care about [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag]’s record inside the octagon, because the entertainment factor is always there.

Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) returned from a two-year layoff on Saturday and suffered a unanimous decision loss in his rematch with Charles Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) at UFC 309, which took place at Madison Square Garden. The lightweight contest was awarded Fight of the Night honors, but as a result the former Bellator champ saw his promotional record drop further below .500.

For Chandler, 38, the result hurts his push to challenge for the 155-pound title. But for White, the performance only further solidified what he already knew – that Chandler is a UFC lifer.

“He’s like an Arturo Gatti,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters post-fight at UFC 309. “He’s one of those – win, lose or draw, you’re never bummed out at the end of a Michael Chandler fight. … He’s always exciting, he’s always fun. The last round of that fight, he kept getting taken down. He got on his back. So when he got on his back at the end, he just stood up and started slamming him.

“The kid always tries to win. He always comes to fight and Michael Chandler’s always going to have a home here. Until he decides to retire, Michael Chandler isn’t going anywhere.”

Chandler’s layoff from competition was the product of waiting for a fight against Conor McGregor that never materialized. White said McGregor is expected to make his own return to the cage in 2025, but it’s too soon to consider putting that fight back together.

“Will he fight Conor? I don’t know,” White said.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

UFC 309 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Jon Jones leads card in potential final bout

Jon Jones’ $42,000 led the Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts for UFC 309 in New York.

NEW YORK – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 309 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $262,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC 309 took place at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

The full UFC 309 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag]: $42,000
[autotag]Stipe Miocic[/autotag]: $32,000

[autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Viviane Araujo[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Bo Nickal[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Mauricio Ruffy[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]James Llontop[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Marcus McGhee[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Damon Jackson[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]David Onama[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Roberto Romero[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Jhonata Diniz[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Mickey Gall[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Ramiz Brahimaj[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Bassil Hafez[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Oban Elliott[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Eduarda Moura[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Veronica Hardy[/autotag]: $6,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $7,543,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $30,280,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Extra UFC 309 bonus given out – but not for Jim Miller’s slick submission

Five bonuses were given out at UFC 309 instead of the customary four, but not one for all-time record-holder Jim Miller’s finish.

The UFC handed out five bonuses after Saturday’s card instead of the customary four – but passed on giving one, at least officially, to one of its all-time record-holders, Jim Miller, for a highlight-reel finish.

After UFC 309, five fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in New York. Check out the winners below.

Performance of the Night: Oban Elliott

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Oban Elliott def. Bassil Hafez via knockout (punches) – Round 3, 0:40

Oban Elliott (12-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) continued to roll in his rookie year in the UFC. He took out Bassil Hafez (9-5-1 MMA, 1-2 UFC) with a third-round knockout, which brought him to 3-0 in 2024 with three finishes. Only Carlos Prates has had a bigger calendar year for UFC newcomers. After six straight decision wins, Elliott got his first stoppage since May 2022 under the Cage Warriors banner.

Performance of the Night: Ramiz Brahimaj

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Ramiz Brahimaj def. Mickey Gall via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:55

Ramiz Brahimaj (11-5 MMA, 3-3 UFC) played big-time spoiler when he ruined the sort-of homecoming for New Jersey native Mickey Gall (7-7 MMA, 6-7 UFC) with a brutal first-round knockout. It was Gall’s fourth straight setback and likely the end of his run in the UFC. After 10 straight submission stoppages to open his career, Brahimaj got his first knockout.

Performance of the Night: Jon Jones

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Jon Jones def. Stipe Miocic via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 4:29

He was out of action for nearly two years, but Jon Jones (28-1 MMA, 22-1 UFC) returned and outright destroyed former champion Stipe Miocic (20-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) with a third-round TKO for his first heavyweight title defense. Miocic had been on the shelf for nearly four years.

Fight of the Night: Charles Oliveira def. Michael Chandler

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Charles Oliveira def. Michael Chandler via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)

[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC) didn’t get his mega-payday from a fight with Conor McGregor, who left him at the proverbial alter for the better part of nearly two years after agreeing to fight him. Instead, Chandler returned Saturday and spent 20 minutes getting dominated by Charles Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) before a brief rally in the fifth round made things momentarily interesting and turned it into a Fight of the Night instead of merely a destructive performance from Oliveira.

SNUBBED: Jim Miller

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Jim Miller def. Damon Jackson via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 2:44

Jim Miller (38-18 MMA, 27-17 UFC), the UFC’s record-holder for most career fights, won for the third time in four fights when he jumped a guillotine choke against Damon Jackson (23-8-1 MMA, 6-6-1 UFC) and forced a tap in the first round. Miller’s three wins in his current stretch all are stoppages – and the first two went for bonuses until he was passed over at UFC 309, which happened to be basically the biggest New York-related fan pop of the night for the New Jersey native. .

UFC 309 results: Charles Oliveira survives chaotic final round to beat Michael Chandler again

The UFC 309 co-main event between Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler had a wild ending, but a clear-cut winner.

[autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] largely dominated [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] on Saturday in the UFC 309 co-main event, but it wasn’t without a scare.

After four rounds of domination by Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) in the grappling department, he had to dig deep to survive a late onslaught from Chandler (23-9 MMA, 2-4 UFC). He ultimately won by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45).

In each of the first three rounds, Oliveira took down Chandler. And once there, it was his world. However, Chandler’s defense was good enough to fend off constant rear-naked choke attempts. In Round 2, Oliveira also landed some solid strikes on Chandler, who appeared to struggle with his footing, tripping over the cage at some points.

But much of the most memorable action took place in a wild Round 5. After a push kick by Oliveira seemed to wobble Chandler’s lead leg, the former Bellator champion got him back. Chandler landed a big punch that wobbled Oliveira and sent him on the retreat.

Oliveira tried to grab hold but Chandler dumped him to the canvas. Chandler then unloaded more than 12 punches, many of which appeared to be to the back of the head, though not in the eyes of referee Keith Peterson.

Chandler sat in Oliveira’s guard for a bit before eventually getting back to his feet. Once there, Chandler waved on Oliveira, only to be dragged to the canvas again.

In the final minutes, Oliveira grabbed Chandler’s back. Chandler then stood up not once, but twice, with Oliveira on his back. Each time, Chandler slammed Oliveira with a backdrop, but the Brazilian hung on tight as the final bell sounded.

With the win, Oliveira moves to 2-0 against Chandler. The two fought for the vacant lightweight title in May 2021 when Oliveira knocked out Chandler in the opening seconds of Round 2.

Oliveira bounces back from a split decision loss to Arman Tsarukyan in April. He moves to 2-1 in his most recent three.

As for Chandler, Saturday’s fight marked his first action since November 2022. He sat on the sidelines waiting for a Conor McGregor fight that has not yet materialized, but eventually decided to pivot. With the loss, Chandler moves to 1-4 in his most recent five.

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Up-to-the-minute UFC 309 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Charles Oliveira def. Michael Chandler at UFC 309: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Charles Oliveira’s unanimous decision win over Michael Chandler at UFC 309.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag]’s dominant unanimous decision win over [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] at UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Photos by Brad Penner, Imagn Images; UFC; MMA Junkie)