Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

UFC Told How To Avoid Mark Hunt vs. Brock Lesnar Situation While Making Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler

Originally posted on MMA News | Last updated 8/16/23

John McCarthy believes that the only way Conor McGregor will return to the UFC by the end of the year is if the promotion is able to cut a deal with Michael Chandler.

McGregor’s role on Season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter was meant to generate hype for his long-awaited UFC return against opposing coach Chandler, but the likelihood of that matchup occurring has decreased significantly since the show began airing.

The primary obstacle to the former two-division UFC champion’s return is the fact that he still hasn’t returned to the USADA testing pool, and if he’s serious about fighting Chandler in December then McCarthy knows exactly what needs to happen.

“Dana is gonna bring in Michael Chandler or Michael Chandler’s managers and make a deal,” McCarthy said on Weighing In. “Let’s just be honest, that’s what it’s gonna be. Michael Chandler’s gonna have to – especially based on what happened with Mark Hunt – Michael Chandler’s gonna have to agree that ‘Oh, Conor is not gonna be tested for the six months before.’ Like Henry Cejudo had to do. It’s gonna be an abbreviated testing schedule for Conor for him to fight in December. You’ve got September, October, November, December, that’s four. And that’s as much as you’re gonna get.”

John McCarthy Expects Michael Chandler To Accept Conor McGregor Fight

The UFC famously waived the usual USADA requirements to allow Brock Lesnar to fight Mark Hunt at UFC 200 before being sued by “Super Samoan” when Lesnar failed a pair of drug tests, but if the promotion explains the McGregor situation to Chandler then McCarthy doesn’t expect there to be much of an issue.

“So you take a look and say ‘Michael Chandler, you’re gonna make a lot of money here. What do you think? Are you okay if he’s only tested for three months?’ Michael Chandler’s gonna go ‘Yup, I’m good.’ So I don’t think – in the end, you’re gonna have to get Chandler to sign off on that. Because they’re not gonna go through another lawsuit with what happened before.”

Chandler has remained committed to the idea of fighting McGregor over the last few months despite the Irishman’s USADA status, however “Iron” has expressed a bit of frustration at the former two-division champion’s interest in calling out other fighters.

“The Notorious” suggested earlier this month that the UFC might be exploring other options outside of the Chandler matchup, but when asked about his return at the recent Anthony Joshua vs. Robert Helenius boxing match McGregor outlined a three-fight plan that starts with fighting the former Bellator champion in December.

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