Michael Chandler hasn’t fought in two years, but he truly shined in his long-awaited return to the octagon, at least in the fifth round. At UFC 309, it was Charles Oliveira who came out as the winner of the fight via unanimous decision, as BJJ prevailed over Chandler’s wrestling style. ‘Do Bronx’ completely dominated the first four rounds. However, the American gave hope to his fans by taking charge through some strikes on Oliveira and maintaining momentum.

However, not all of his strikes were as clean as his fans would’ve expected. In fact, many were illegal! During a moment in the fifth round, Michael Chandler kept hitting Charles Oliveira on the back of his head while the two were on the ground. This is an illegal move and something that was called out by Daniel Cormier in the commentary. ‘DC’ kept screaming, “Behind the head! Oh, behind the head! Hitting em behind the head! That’s all behind the head.” He even took the issue to UFC matchmaker Hunter Campbell.

However, the referee, Keith Peterson, did not stop ‘Iron’ from hitting the strikes. A decision that has been called on online by others such as UFC fighter Jessica Penne and internet MMA pundit, Chamatkar Sandhu.

As the duo wrote, “Are we not calling strikes to the back of the head anymore? #ufc309” and “KEITH PETERSON SUCKS!!!!!!” respectively.

This was Michael Chandler’s fourth loss in the UFC. The American walked into the Octagon after going 1-3 in his last four fights and missing out on a high-profile fight with Conor McGregor. However, the Madison Square Garden curse continues for the American MMA fighter, as he suffered yet another defeat at the iconic stadium, as many of his fans already feared.

Michael Chandler’s torrid history at the MSG continues

Tonight at UFC 309, Chandler was up against one of the best fighters in the UFC. However, the biggest threat to him was something else. While he might’ve wanted to defeat Oliveria, he also had the task of breaking his losing streak on the world’s most famous stage, the Madison Square Garden. While in the UFC, Chandler has fought and lost twice at Madison Square Garden.

The first loss came at UFC 268 in November 2021, where he won the night’s fight honors despite a decision loss to Justin Gaethje. In his most recent fight there, Dustin Poirier submitted him at UFC 281 in November 2022 in an enthralling bout. Prior to joining the UFC, Chandler also lost at Madison Square Garden to Brent Primus during his Bellator career. But while Chandler’s curse continued, Charles Oliveira too broke a personal record after tonight’s decisive win.

‘Do Bronx’ has always been a fighter who finished his fights within just three rounds, whether it be a loss or a win. With his last three losses ending in the very second round. However, after going through forty-six grueling fights, Oliveira has finally gone all five rounds in MMA. And to make it more memorable, it is a win against one of the best in the UFC, Michael Chandler. What did you think of the fight? Let us know in the comments.