Tag: The Ultimate Fighter 31

Dana White says Conor McGregor’s stipulation to coach ‘TUF 31’ was to bring two of his fighters

“He’s like, ‘Yeah, I’ll do it, but I’m bringing two guys that I want to make it right onto the show.'”

According to [autotag]Dana White[/autotag], UFC star [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] accepted to coach “The Ultimate Fighter 31” under one condition.

UFC president White said the Irish superstar wanted two of his fighters on the show, who are believed to be unbeaten prospect Lee Hammond, and “TUF 27” winner Brad Katona – both who train with McGregor at SBG Ireland in Dublin. The additions of those fighters meant others had their spots overtaken.

Although McGregor denied making such demands, White confirmed what the likes of manager Danny Rubenstein and UFC welterweight contender Gilbert Burns were upset about.

“Conor McGregor was going to coach this season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ and he’s like, ‘Yeah, I’ll do it, but I’m bringing two guys that I want to make it right onto the show,'” White said on The Pat McAfee show. “Then, of course, the f*cking media (says), ‘Oh, that’s not fair, and what happened to those guys?’ Shut the f*ck up. We’ll take care of the guys that aren’t on it, and this is what Conor wants, we’ll give it to him.”

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One of those fighters was Loik Radzhabov, who wound up getting a short-notice call-up to face Esteban Ribovics this past Saturday at UFC 285 – a fight he won by split decision. White went on to justify meeting McGregor’s demands, complimenting him as a business partner.

“He’s a great partner,” White said. “Conor is a great partner to work with. Conor and I have never had a problem. You think about this kid went from nobody knew who he was to one of the biggest superstars in all of sports. You’ve never really seen any real public blowouts with me and him. A lot of times when you get to that level of fame and money, it f*cks everything up. That’s never happened with me and Conor, we’ve always been solid.”

McGregor is coaching “TUF 31,” which features men’s bantamweights and lightweights, opposite side Michael Chandler. The pair will throw down after the taping of the show.

Michael Chandler describes ‘Venn diagram’ of Conor McGregor’s personalities during ‘TUF 31’ filming

Conor McGregor “on Monday is different than Conor on Tuesday, who’s different than Conor on Wednesday, and I freaking love it,” Michael Chandler says.

LAS VEGAS – According to [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag], things aren’t as smooth with [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] as he thought they would be.

Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) respectfully called out McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) and wound up getting his wish as the pair are slated to fight later this year. But first, Chandler will coach “The Ultimate Fighter 31” opposite the former UFC two-division champion.

UFC president Dana White hinted at an altercation between the two this past weekend during the filming of the show, and Chandler confirms that things are starting to heat up.

“It’s always fun and cordial until it isn’t,” Chandler said backstage at UFC 285. “It’s always copacetic until we hit the boiling point. Conor and I are natural born competitors. I came here to prove that I’m better – better than him in every sense of the word, in every single aspect of competition, and not just us fighting later this year, but in this competition of ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ Conor and I have a lot of mutual respect for each other.

“Even in his awesome brash trash talk, behind all of that stuff, he’s got a lot of respect for the sport, for the purity of mixed martial arts, the purity of martial arts, and all of its competitors. Conor and I have a lot of mutual respect for one another. But ultimately I don’t know if we like each other as much as we thought we were going to. And the good thing is, we get to settle it with 4-ounce gloves under a certain rule set and a contest later on this year. And I can’t wait.”

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Chandler also discussed McGregor’s multiple personalities that he’s experienced while around him. The Irish superstar is notorious for his trash talk, but fans saw a cordial version of him in his rematch with Dustin Poirier, before he returned to his usual ways in their trilogy bout at UFC 264.

“I think I made my prediction correctly when I see a guy in Conor who is so good at looking at the Venn diagram of good guy/bad guy, and guy in between who doesn’t quite know when he’s going to be crazy-mean, crazy-witty, crazy-nice, crazy-respective, or respectful only – crazy-respectful, just to set you up to lower your guard just so he can spit you with some venom the next day,” Chandler said. “Conor on Monday is different than Conor on Tuesday, who’s different than Conor on Wednesday, and I freaking love it.

“I absolutely love it. I came in with my arms open, my hands open, saying I have no idea what to expect here. I’m just trying to be authentically myself and let the chips fall where they may because you never know. You never quite know what’s going to happen. And also with me and my team and his, you can’t make a plan, because your plan’s going to get spoiled on this show, because there’s all kinds of crazy stuff getting pulled out of the hat at all different times. But Conor’s been both sides of the coin, to say the least.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 285.

Video: Controversy surrounds Conor McGregor at the start of ‘The Ultimate Fighter 31’

Our “Spinning Back Clique” discusses the reports of Conor McGregor adding his own fighters to “The Ultimate Fighter 31” contestant pool.

[autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] is back for “The Ultimate Fighter 31,” but has allegedly caused a stir behind the scenes.

McGregor, who is coaching opposite [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] in the upcoming season of ‘TUF’ which is currently filming in Las Vegas, was accused of removing fighters already in the contestant pool to replace them with fighters from his own stable.

Well-known MMA manager Daniel Rubenstein and UFC middleweight Chris Curtis were among those who publicly stated McGregor influenced the casting, although the former two-division UFC champion denied the claim.

It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for the biggest star in the UFC to have some input on the reality series that he’s coaching in, but if it did happen, what message does that send to the fighters who were expecting to fight their way to a UFC contract? Could it have been the nature of reality television that deals with unexpected changes and McGregor was an easy target to blame?

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Nolan King and Brian “Goze” Garcia discuss the topic along with host “Gorgeous” George Garcia.

Check out their discussion in the video above, and be sure to check out this week’s full episode below.

 

Conor McGregor arrives in Las Vegas to coach ‘The Ultimate Fighter 31′

Conor McGregor has arrived in Las Vegas to begin filming “The Ultimate Fighter 31,” coaching opposite Michael Chandler.

[autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] has touched down in Las Vegas and is ready to begin filming the upcoming season of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

Former two-division UFC champion McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) will coach a team of men’s bantamweights and lightweights opposite former UFC lightweight title challenger [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag].

Check out video of McGregor arriving at the UFC Apex below (via Instagram):

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Covr4sMpmGK/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Fighters and alternates for ‘TUF 31’ have been in Las Vegas since last Tuesday, awaiting McGregor’s arrival. Selections have been made and fighters who made the cut for the show had to turn over their phones when they were informed.

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Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) is also ready with his team of coaches, which includes former UFC light heavyweight and current Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CovtlK-JHV1/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Keeping with ‘TUF’ tradition, McGregor and Chandler are expected to fight at the conclusion of the show, although no specific details about the matchup have been finalized.

McGregor, 34, was last in action at UFC 264 in July 2021 in a trilogy bout against Dustin Poirier. The fight was stopped in the first round after McGregor broke his ankle, an injury he has been recovering from since. McGregor famously became the undisputed featherweight champion at UFC 194, when he knocked out Jose Aldo in just 13 seconds. Less than a year later, he stopped Eddie Alvarez in the second round to win the lightweight title, becoming a two-division champion.

The upcoming season of TUF will be McGregor’s second stint as a coach on the show. In 2015, he coached opposite UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber on Season 22 of the reality series.

Chandler, 36, joined the UFC in 2021 after a long run under the Bellator banner. Since his arrival, he has fought five times, including a shot at the lightweight title against Charles Oliveira. Known for his exciting, hard-hitting style, Chandler has taken home four bonuses for his performances inside the octagon.