Chael Sonnen confident Conor McGregor makes UFC 303 but suggests Michael Chandler vs. Max Holloway if not
Chael Sonnen is confident Conor McGregor fights at UFC 303, but if he doesn’t, he has another option for Michael Chandler.
McGregor issued an apology for the cancellation of the UFC 303 pre-fight press conference with Chandler, which was scheduled for Monday at 3Arena in Dublin. The late cancellation has caused speculation that there could be something up with McGregor, even though “The Notorious” assured he’ll return June 29.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) has never pulled out of a scheduled bout, which is why Sonnen has no doubts that he will make the fight against Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC).
“A man will live his life by a code, and that code might not be in line with standard societal policies or even laws, but he will adhere to that code at all costs,” Sonnen said on his ESPN show “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “One of Conor’s codes is the show must go on. When he was broken in half in his last fight, and Joe said, ‘I don’t interview injured guys, we got to get you on a stretcher,’ Conor called him over and pulled him down to the mat. Joe sat down to do that interview, why? Because we’ve yet to fade to black and roll the credits, and the show must go on.
“I happened to be with Conor McGregor when Jose Aldo pulled out and Chad Mendes got stuck in. We’re on the campus of ESPN doing some media. I was there when Conor took the call and couldn’t have possibly cared any less of the opponent change because the show must go on. I just don’t believe that a month in advance, whether it’s illness or injury or any other excuse that Conor is going to be the one to pull. It would change the code that he must, as a human being, fiercely adhere to.”
If for some reason McGregor doesn’t fight at UFC 303, Sonnen suggests Chandler challenge Max Holloway (26-7 MMA, 22-7 UFC) for the BMF title. UFC CEO Dana White revealed this past Saturday that the next BMF title fight is being worked on, but he didn’t mention any details.
“But I will tell you this, there will be no postponement of this fight,” Sonnen continued. “They either fight on the 29th or we move on. Oh, and by the way, the show is still going to happen. I believe Conor is going to be opposite Michael Chandler, I’m very confident in telling you that. However, if he’s not, Michael Chandler vs. Max Holloway for the BMF is the fight to book.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 303.