“I Don’t Know if He’s Just Playing”: Conor McGregor’s Coaching Role Gets Dissected by Michael Chandler Following TUF 31 Stint

Conor McGregor is due to return to the UFC in a comeback fight against Michael Chandler. Both fighters will also feature in the upcoming season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ as coaches of the opposing teams. ‘Iron’ Chandler recently opened up about his thoughts on Conor McGregor as a coach in ‘The Schaub Show’ podcast.

Michael Chandler will take on Conor McGregor in the biggest fight of his career. They recently wrapped up filming for TUF 31, which will premiere on May 30th. They will lock horns inside the octagon after the reality TV series ends.

Michael Chandler opens up about Conor McGregor as a coach

While talking to Brendan Schaub, Michael Chandler explains that he and McGregor both used different tactics to coach their fighters. However, he mentioned one thing about ‘Notorious’ that he took notice of. It was the fact that the former double champion is always hands-on when it came to giving advice. Chandler said, “Watching him in the practices or seeing some clips that have been leaked, he was there. He’s talky. He talks a lot.” 

Michael Chandler also mentioned that he wasn’t sure if Conor McGregor really cared to help someone out, or if he was just helping out because of his involvement in TUF as a coach. Chandler added, “I don’t know if he’s just playing up the ‘Conor’s a coach right now’ while The Ultimate Fighter’s about to go. But he looks at the game and is not afraid to give his opinion.”

Chandler is confident that he will defeat ‘Notorious’

The former Bellator champion believes that he will be able to overpower Conor McGregor in their upcoming fight. He explained his game plan for the fight to Brendan Schaub. Chandler said, “I am gonna put my foot on the gas, get in his face, put him on his back foot early, and try to knock him out.”

The 37-year-old fighter even gave his own ‘Mystic Mike’ prediction and promises to defeat Conor McGregor within a couple of rounds into their fight. Chandler added, “My Mystic Mike prediction [is] I knock him out in the second round. I beat him up pretty bad, wear him down in the first [round], make him second guess himself, and bam!” Chandler even suggested that he might go for his signature backflip celebration after the fight.

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Conor McGregor’s fight with Michael Chandler is still in its developmental phases. The UFC is yet to decide the date, venue, and weight category regarding the fight. We will have to wait and see what pans out in the future. What do you make of Chandler’s claims? Let us know in the comments section below.

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