MMA News Roundup: Dana White Faces Another Hurdle After UFC 303 Woes, Michael Chandler’s Unexpected Message for Conor McGregor, Chael Sonnen Challenges Draw Against Anderson Silva

More problem arises for the UFC supremo for fight dates, Michael Chandler’s heartbreaking reaction to UFC 303 withdrawal, and Chael Sonnen’s initial reaction to his defeat. The last 24 hours have been a rollercoaster ride for the MMA community. In today’s installment of the MMA roundup, we are going to dive deeper into the happening and non-happening of the last few hours. Let’s get into it.

We will start our journey with the rescheduling of Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler. Then we will be shifting our focus to Michael Chandler’s first reaction about the UFC 303 falling off and finally, we will stop at Chael Sonnen’s intriguing reaction to his defeat to his arch-rival, Anderson Silva. So grab a cup of coffee and let us get into it.

Dana White is unsure of the next Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler outing after UFC 303 fiasco

The most anticipated clash of the year fell off like dominoes as Conor McGregor announced that he would have to withdraw from his fight citing newfound injuries on his same shin which was broken back in 2021 when he fought against Dustin Poirier. The Dana White war room immediately clinched in Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira to save the card. When things started to look a bit settled for the promotion, a new challenge appeared in front of them as the MMA community was asking about the rescheduling of the McGregor vs. Chandler clash.

Will it be UFC 305, UFC 306, or UFC 307? Well according to Ariel Helwani neither of these events will witness a clash between Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler. According to Helwani, the UFC’s admin team is scrambling to adjust a place for McGregor and Chandler to face each other but the happening od the event might take place after the UFC 307.

The UFC does not want them to headline UFC 306 at The Sphere, and both UFC 305 in Perth and UFC 307 in Utah (rumored) don’t make sense. So they will have to either create a new PPV date, which they are pushing for, or push the fight to later in the year. Well, their clash might be shifted to next year. Nonetheless, it is a sad day for the MMA fans but it is a worse day for Chandler who waited more than a year to face Conor McGregor.

Michael Chandler’s first reaction to the sad state of affairs

The last time Michael Chandler entered the Octagon was back in 2022 when he faced Dustin Poirier. He has been since then waiting for Conor McGregor to come back so that he could fight against him. Chandler’s words were heard by the former dual weight champion as he announced on January 1st that he would be fighting him on June 29th on International Fight Week. It was later confirmed by Dana White, however, everything fell off when the June 3rd press conference was canceled by the promotion.

The cancellation was the final nail in the coffin of their clash. Last week, the UFC and Conor McGregor officially announced that they had to let go of the fight due to McGregor’s injury. The former dual-weight champion took to his X handle to add an apology to the community and underneath that post we find Chandler’s initial reaction to it.

“No hard feelings. Heal up. My heart is full. See you soon.” He further added, “Official statement: “I’m here, just as in 2009 when I started. The most reliable man in MMA. See you when I see you.” Well, it’s kind of sad for Chandler to have waited for a year and not get the match despite all the excitement around UFC 303. Regardless, let’s move on to Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva, who just fought after years of retirement.

Chael Sonnen’s reaction to his defeat against Anderson Silva

14 years after their first fight, Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva met again in Sao Paulo, Brazil for a final clash but this time not in the MMA Octagon but in a Boxing ring. Both the fighters started off strong, however, there was a lack of strength as observed by the fans. Nonetheless, the match ended in a draw as there was no official scoring but according to Sonnen, he grabbed the victory.

“I thought I won the first three rounds. You have to understand, he let me win the first one. He always lets me win the first round. That’s like one of his strategies: he feels you out. He lets everybody win the first round. I did the same thing in rounds two and three that I did in the first round, but I slipped somewhere in the fourth round,” said Sonnen.

He further added, “Then they brought the doctor in at some point because I had a bloody nose or something. It’s like, come on, you’re making this look way worse than it is. It was three rounds to two. I thought I won that fight.” What’s your take on their clash? State your thoughts in the comments below.