Conor McGregor to make long-awaited UFC return against Michael Chandler | UFC

Conor McGregor will make his long-awaited return to the octagon towards Michael Chandler on 29 June, three years after he broke his left leg throughout a battle towards Dustin Poirier, the Final Combating Championship (UFC) president, Dana White, mentioned. The welterweight bout is scheduled to headline the UFC 303 card in Las Vegas, White mentioned after Saturday’s UFC 300 occasion.

McGregor (who has 22 wins and 6 defeats) has not fought because the clear break in his tibia resulted in a second technical knockout loss to Poirier in a row in July 2021. The damage required the previous UFC featherweight and light-weight champion to endure surgical procedure. The previous Bellator light-weight champion Chandler (23-8) additionally misplaced to his fellow American, Poirier, in his final battle in November 2022.

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The battle has been teased by the UFC for greater than a 12 months, with McGregor and Chandler teaching opposing groups of their MMA-based actuality present The Final Fighter final 12 months. McGregor introduced the identical date and opponent for his subsequent bout in a video posted on X final December, calling it the “best comeback of all time”.

“There’s all types of issues that go on behind the scenes and it’s all about timing. Chandler’s been prepared however Conor hasn’t been prepared,” White mentioned. “We talked about this in one of many press conferences not too long ago, he had a variety of obligations that he needed to take care of. What you don’t need him doing is accepting a battle when he’s received a ton of obligations and he can’t practice 100% for a battle, so right here we’re tonight.”

On the UFC 300 card, Brazil’s Alex Pereira pulled off a surprising first-round knockout victory over Jamahal Hill to retain the sunshine heavyweight title, whereas Zhang Weili beat Yan Xiaonan to retain the strawweight belt.

Pereira waved off what a low blow from Hill earlier than touchdown a left hook that despatched the American sprawling backwards on to the canvas. He then pounced to rain down blows and drive the stoppage on the 3min 14sec mark of the primary spherical. “I informed everybody the entire time, he’s a robust man, I can’t go away from my technique, and that’s precisely what I used to be doing … I used to be gauging the gap and the timing, and every thing went completely,” Pereira mentioned in a post-fight interview within the cage.

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Hill had gained the title in January 2023, however an damage suffered taking part in basketball compelled him to vacate in July and the adorned kickboxer Pereira, a former UFC middleweight champion, took over the belt with a second-round knockout of Jiri Prochazka in November. After coming via the battle comparatively unscathed, Pereira mentioned he want to battle on the upcoming UFC card in Brazil in Could, and that he had sustained no harm towards Hill.

Within the all-Chinese language conflict within the strawweight occasion, Zhang regarded like she had nearly ended the battle within the first spherical with a rear bare choke, however her 34-year-old opponent survived till the bell, wanting unsteady as she received again to her toes. Yan had some success on her toes, however Zhang introduced the battle to the mat as usually as attainable, dominating the grappling exchanges en path to a unanimous-decision victory.

In maybe probably the most thrilling end on the cardboard, Max Holloway folded Justin Gaethje with a thunderous proper hand to win their light-weight battle by knockout with one second left on the clock after an incredible five-round battle.