CONOR MCGREGOR has been urged to fight Michael Chandler in his eagerly-anticipated return to the octagon.
The UFC’s poster boy is targeting a return to action early next year following a 16-month hiatus from the octagon.
Conor McGregor hasn’t set foot inside the octagon since breaking his leg last year
McGregor is targeting a return to the octagon early next year
The Notorious has been urged to face Michael Chandler in his comeback fight
McGregor, 34, has a wealth of options for his comeback fight – but former two-division champion Daniel Cormier reckons he should consider locking horns with fan favourite Chandler.
During the latest edition of DC & RC, he said: “I think it’s Michael Chandler [should be next].
“Honestly… I think that Michael Chandler’s last fight is why he might get the Conor McGregor fight.
“RC, we saw him try to wrestle Dustin Poirier, and even though he’s a wrestler and in phenomenal shape, he did get tired in that third (round)… when he got tired, he made a mistake, and [Poirier] submitted him.”
Cormier reckons Chandler’s willingness to throw caution to the wind and not to rely on his wrestling may land him the biggest fight of his career.
He added: “He also was willing to stand with a guy that hits hard, is predominantly a striker, and tested himself.
“I think, because he fights in that way, it makes a guy like McGregor go, ‘Wait a minute, I want him.
“Because I know this guy’s gonna be there to fight, this guy’s gonna be there to hit, and I also know that this guy will not be trying to wrestle me for the entirety of this fight.
“He’ll stand with me and he doesn’t have the background I have in striking.”
McGregor hasn’t set foot inside the octagon since breaking his leg in his trilogy fight with Poirier last July.
The Irishman has undergone a dramatic body transformation during his hiatus from the cage – which he plans to return to before the end of the first quarter of 2023.
During an impromptu Instagram Q&A, he said: “I’m going to be back soon, hopefully.
“Early 2023 I’m aiming for. Sometime in that first quarter.
“That will give me a good couple of months [to prepare].
Conor McGregor must re-enter the USADA testing pool for six months before returning
“Once I wrap this up in a couple of days, get the camp going [for] a good couple of months. And get going.”
The Dubliner, however, will have to first return to the United States Anti-Doping Agency for a minimum of six months – unless he’s given an exemption – before he can return to action.
