One of the biggest attractions of the year is the return of Conor McGregor at International Fight Week. The Dubliner will be taking on one of his biggest rivals, Michael Chandler, in a much-anticipated clash. McGregor will be making a return after a gap of three years, with just two fights left in his contract.

The absence of McGregor has raised many questions about his fighting ability. Many feel that the former dual champion is way past his best. It now seems fan favorite UFC analyst Chael Sonnen also agrees with the fact. In his recent interview, he picked his favorite for the upcoming UFC 303 battle, and it’s not ‘The Notorious’ one.

A former UFC fighter feels Conor McGregor has no chance against Chandler

Chael Sonnen recently appeared for an interview with Donagh Corby of Bloody Elbow. Unlike most MMA fans, Sonnen isn’t quite excited about the return of ‘Mystic Mac’. While speaking to the host, ‘The American Gangster’ had no hesitation in picking ‘Iron’ as his favorite.

He said, “Michael Chandler, with you have the most disciplined guy in the sport arguably. You have the most undisciplined guy in the sport, for sure. And it’s one of those situations where when you do this conversation everybody’s going to be lazy like I’m going to be right now and say Conor’s got a puncher chance and if Chandler stands up with him, so on and so forth.”

The fight will be taking place at the 170-pound division, which many think is the strength of Chandler. Despite being a former dual champion, Sonnen feels the Dubliner has no chance. He further added, “I don’t know where you got that idea of puncher chance. I know that’s something people say. The better guy wins, he wins every single time and Michael Chandler can go out there and box with Conor at this point.”

Uncle Sonnen has been very vocal about the upcoming UFC 303 fight. Despite picking Chandler as the favorite, the former UFC fighter is still in awe of McGregor’s stardom. In one of his recent interviews, he shared his honest opinion about McGregor and his return.

Chael Sonnen believes Conor McGregor is still the biggest star in the UFC

There are very few athletes in the UFC who can match up to the Dubliners’ stardom. Despite coming off a three-year break, the former dual champion has gathered a lot of attention. Before his UFC 303 return, the Irish superstar had already set a record by generating $20 million worth of ticket sales for the T-Mobile Arena card in Las Vegas. Former UFC fighter Chael Sonnen seemed highly impressed by McGregor’s stardom. He recently shared that despite his absence, the 35-year-old still has a lot to offer for the promotion. 

He said, “[He’s] older, not coming off of a victory, different weight class… So you got a few of these things and… the light is bright but it’s dimming. Well, numbers don’t lie, and Conor McGregor already has surpassed the live gate record, of which is currently held by Conor McGregor he’s, already surpassed it for number one.” Sonnen also referred to the fight as “the most sought-after fight” in MMA history.

The fight is the main event of UFC 303 and is nowhere close to a title fight. However, it has still managed to draw a lot of attention from the fans. Do you feel Uncle Sonnen is correct about his prediction? Let us know in the comments below.