Jose Aldo Anticipates Vintage Conor McGregor Performance Against Michael Chandler at UFC 303: “Expect Great Things”

Conor McGregor will be returning after a three-year layoff from the sport in a weight class that he has fought three times before. And to top it all off, ‘The Notorious’ suffered one of the worst injuries ever seen on live TV during his fight against Dustin Poirier. While McGregor’s return is shrouded in darkness, former UFC champion Jose Aldo is expecting ‘great things’ from McGregor on his return.

Conor McGregor became a megastar in the sport at UFC 194. The Irishman stopped Jose Aldo in 13-seconds to win the title. Since then, there has been no looking back for McGregor. Former rival Jose Aldo recently sat down for an interview with ‘MMA Junkie’, where he shared his thoughts on McGregor’s return. While speaking about it, Aldo said,

“I have great expectations for that fight. And as I always say I always root for the guys who I fought and the guys who have beat me because that just proves that I lost to the best. And that I lost to the champion. I hope he can go in there and be the Conor of old, and go in there to finish the fight and not leave it to the judges. I expect great things from that fight.”

McGregor’s performance against Aldo was arguably one of his best in the UFC so far. Going into the fight, ‘The Notorious’ predicted exactly how Aldo would react and how he would finish the fight. Unfortunately, in his last few fights, McGregor has not been the same version that took on the likes of Jose Aldo and Eddie Alvarez.

However, Aldo seems to be confident. He stated that since he fought McGregor, he knows how much capable of a fighter ‘Mystic Mac’ is. Terming McGregor as the ‘best’, Aldo predicted that the Irishman will probably finish the fight before the fifth round. Meanwhile, a closer look at the upcoming bout might clear some air on the suspicions.

A closer look at Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler

‘The Notorious’ took on Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 after a prolonged period of absence from the sport. During the fight, McGregor adopted a new stance that was previously not used by him.

He was extremely heavy on his lead leg and did not move around fluidly like he used to. ‘The Diamond’ used leg kicks to completely shut down his movement before landing a knockout blow on McGregor.

 

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While he did revert back to the original Conor McGregor movement in the rematch at UFC 264, it did not last long enough as he broke his ankle, eventually losing the fight.

Against Michael Chandler, ‘Mystic Mac’ would be expected to be in his prime form. And if that version of McGregor does step into the ring, a finish is a very real possibility.