Conor McGregor has announced his return to the UFC, revealing that he will face Michael Chandler in Las Vegas on June 29. The former UFC champion has been absent from the octagon since breaking his leg in a bout against Dustin Poirier in July 2021, but it seems that he has healed up and is ready to wow fans once again.

In a video shared on social media on New Year’s Eve, McGregor expressed his excitement for what he labeled the “greatest comeback of all time.” What made the announcement more spectacular was that McGregor said that the fight would be in the middleweight division, where neither he nor Chandler had fought before.

McGregor stated, “For the greatest comeback of all time will take place in Las Vegas for International Fight Week on June 29th. The opponent, Michael Chandler. The weight, Mr. Chandler, is 185lb.” Chandler responded to the announcement, expressing his anticipation for facing McGregor at his best, baddest, and biggest, embracing the challenge of competing at 185lb.

The matchup between McGregor and Chandler has been anticipated since the two served as coaches on the UFC’s reality TV series, The Ultimate Fighter. Traditionally, coaches on the show face each other in a bout, but the fight was delayed due to McGregor’s absence from the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s testing pool. McGregor re-entered the pool in October, signaling his intention to resume competitive fighting.

There is currently no confirmation from the UFC if they have sanctioned the fight or when it is happening, but we can expect a word from them in the coming days. Just last week, Dana White, president of the UFC, revealed that he and McGregor had been in talks and that we could expect something soon. Maybe this McGregor announcement is the thing we have been waiting for?

This is only the start of the year, and we can expect to have more information about McGregor vs. Chandler in the coming days.

Leon Osamor