Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler at UFC 303 is in dire straights.
Final week, the UFC 303 fundamental occasion was thrown into turmoil when a deliberate Dublin press convention for the occasion was postponed final minute with out clarification. That instantly raised considerations that the long-anticipated battle between McGregor and Chandler was all of the sudden in jeopardy, and experiences quickly circulated that the promotion was wanting into alternate plans for his or her Worldwide Battle Week headliner.
However after a number of days of tense hypothesis, and no official announcement from the UFC, it appeared issues have been again on monitor and McGregor could be preventing Chandler on June 29 in Las Vegas. And whereas formally that’s nonetheless the case, it’s wanting increasingly more unlikely, per a report from MMA Combating’s Ariel Helwani on Wednesday’s episode of The MMA Hour.
“On Monday of final week, I’d say optimism degree was not very excessive,” Helwani mentioned. “There was some concern, there was some doubt, there have been street blocks. I got here on this present on Wednesday and mentioned optimism was excessive. There was nice positivity, all these phrases I used. It felt like we had dodged a bullet, it felt like we had turned a nook.
“On Tuesday, I reported that the UFC was sending out feelers, they have been reaching out to fighters and managers to see who might probably be obtainable to both substitute the battle — which means two new fighters — or step in and substitute one of many fighters concerned to battle on this card. Clearly the fighter we’re speaking about is Conor McGregor, as a result of if not, why would Chandler be able to go on a airplane to Dublin?
“So I mentioned that it appeared we have been all good, and by Wednesday, no feelers have been being thrown out, nobody was speaking about this, actually. It appeared as if all programs have been a go.
“Yesterday morning I began to listen to — as I continued to test in as a result of I do know there’s plenty of anxiousness, plenty of doubt, plenty of concern about this as a result of it’s such a giant battle and since nobody concerned are talking about this publicly, Chandler did the one interview and I feel that squashed some concern, however nobody is admittedly speaking about this — and I came upon, through a number of sources, that they’re reaching out to individuals once more. They’re reaching out to managers, they’re reaching out to fighters, as potential replacements, as a brand new battle, as backups, as somebody stepping in for McGregor, or simply as insurance coverage. Simply in case. All this stuff are in play.
“One step additional, right here we’re, Wednesday, 1:15, the positivity that I talked about precisely one week in the past in the present day is nowhere to be discovered. I’d say this battle could be very a lot in limbo. I’d say it’s hanging on and the UFC is working very, very exhausting proper now to determine a Plan B. The Plan B could possibly be somebody stepping in to battle Chandler, the Plan C could possibly be an entire new battle.”
Whereas there may be nonetheless no official phrase on what the obstacles are for this battle, MMA Combating’s Damon Martin was additionally in a position to affirm with sources that the battle is certainly in jeopardy as a consequence of a problem with McGregor and that the promotion is wanting into all its choices. However with UFC 303 only a few weeks away, it’s unclear what replacements can be found on this timeline.
