Although the UFC has not made it official yet, all indications suggest Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler at UFC 303 is off. The pair will not be fighting during International Fight Week to the disappointment of fans. Amidst all these rumors, former UFC champion Ben Askren has his own explanation about the fight not taking place.
Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler have never pulled out of a fight in their entire career. So the question remains, why is the UFC 303 fight not taking place? In a recent interview with Daniel Cormier on YouTube, Ben Askren tells DC that he doesn’t believe it has anything to do with Conor getting injured but his ego.
“I’ve been hearing rumors of injury but part of me says it is negotiation….Conor is stuck in 2015 through 18 where he was that big and he could do that.”
Askren believes that Conor McGregor is still stuck in the old days when he was a bigger star and still thinks he could act like it. The former Bellator champion believes the UFC was not as dependent on the Irishman anymore to make successful cards.
So he thinks the fight negotiations are also the main reason why the fight is not taking place.
However, even Askren has no concrete proof of what’s happening behind the scenes. Is McGregor injured or is he being difficult?
Well, ‘The Notorious’ has posted a video on his Instagram story that would suggest an injury.
Conor McGregor adds fire to injury rumors ahead of Michael Chandler fight at UFC 303
What fans first thought was mind games, is now turning into real concern. Amidst all the fight cancellation talks, both fighters have had very different reactions to the news.
Michael Chandler is still hopeful the fight will happen. However, Conor McGregor has been posting cryptic videos on his Instagram story.
“I think the more resistance you train with, the less movement and the more injury. But the less resistance you train with, the more movement and the less injury.”
Conor McGregor just shared this old video to his Instagram story:
“I think the more resistance you train with, the less movement and the more injury.
But the less resistance you train with, the more movement and the less injury.”
IG / @TheNotoriousMMA #UFC303 #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/6y7bXo5qmB
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) June 13, 2024
Conor McGregor posted the old video on his story with a sad emoji, hinting at the possibility that he injured himself during training.
Either way, this is not an ideal situation for Chandler or McGregor. The fans will begin to lose interest in the fight if the UFC keeps canceling or postponing it. McGregor has been out of the game for a long time now. And Chandler has waited 2 years for this big money fight. So maybe, the UFC will move it towards the end of the year, that is if it’s still a possibility that the fight takes place.
