The UFC lightweight division has undergone significant changes in recent years, with several top contenders being shuffled out of the mix. Although some of the veterans, like Michael Chandler, are further from title contention than they used to be, they remain fixtures at 155 pounds.
Since Chandler’s last appearance in the UFC, a third-round stoppage loss to Paddy Pimblett in April, a new divisional champion was crowned in the form of Ilia Topuria. An undefeated dynamo who held the featherweight title before his move up in weight, Topuria made light work of Chandler’s old rival, Charles Oliveira, to win the title via first-round knockout at UFC 317 in June.
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The 17-0 Topuria has garnered praise aplenty for his accomplishments. Speaking Monday on Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show,” Chandler agreed that Topuria deserves to be regarded as No. 1 pound-for-pound.
“He might be the most impressive mixed martial artist on the entire planet right now, by far,” Chandler said. “His ability to navigate and negotiate the distance, as well as … to know at the exact right time when to throw his attacks, which are not very flashy, by the way, and I love that the most about him.
“I love that Ilia Topuria is winning titles and dominating people by being brilliant with the basics. A good jab, a hard overhand right, followed by a left hook, couple leg kicks here and there, good distance, and most importantly, patience. Being comfortable in the Octagon and knowing exactly when to throw the punches, know when to throw the combinations. He’s impressive, man. I don’t see him losing any time soon.”
Chandler, 39, has fought some of the biggest names at lightweight since joining the UFC roster in early 2021 with a knockout of Dan Hooker. Watching Topuria prove unbeatable thus far in his career, Chandler struggles to see anyone unseating him any time soon. However, if Chandler had to pick a name to beat Topuria, it would be a past foe.
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“When it comes to tactically, the old [Justin] Gaethje would probably go out there and get starched because he’s going to run into one of those big punches,” Chandler said. “He’s definitely cleaned that up a little bit. Paddy is gonna stay away because, as big as he talks, he’s gonna be a little bit cognizant and afraid of the power. Then, Arman [Tsarukyan], you’ve got easily the best grappler out of the lot.
“Best chance to beat him? I’d still go with Gaethje just because of how impressive his entire career has been, and he’s kind of cleaned it up, and he’ll fight more tactically.”
As of right now, Chandler will wait and watch with the rest of the world to see what happens in the lightweight title picture. The former three-time Bellator titleholder doesn’t currently plan to fight again in 2025. But that doesn’t mean he’s devoid of an ideal next step.
A proud American, Chandler targets the potential White House event in Washington, D.C., on July 4, 2026.
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“That’s the one I want, but every single person on the entire UFC roster wants that fight,” Chandler said. “I realize that I, as well as everyone on the roster, are gunning for that card, wanting to be on that card. You got Jon Jones coming out of retirement, entering the testing pool. You got Conor [McGregor] entering the testing pool right after that gets announced, so that’s the one everybody wants. That’s the pinnacle.
“Is that gonna be my next fight? I don’t know, but I’m definitely wanting to be on that card. I’ve spoken to the UFC about it. They know I want to be on that card, carrying the red, white and blue stars and bars across the lawn into the UFC octagon. It would be a dream come true. Opponent to be determined. We shall see.”
Despite his pair of tough losses to Oliveira and Pimblett, a matchup against McGregor remains a logical next step for Chandler, following their tumultuous saga that spanned from 2023 to 2024. That’s assuming the 37-year-old McGregor eventually returns to the UFC after resolving a handful of legal issues outside the Octagon.
Chandler still views McGregor as a dream opponent, but at this point, he’s not holding his breath.
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“I haven’t really processed it much,” Chandler said of rebooking the fight. “It’s been a lot of the same stuff over the last couple years, with the whole Chandler-McGregor TUF 31, pull-out of the fight for June 29 saga we’ve had. I don’t really think about it a ton. I know I want to fight at the White House. I would love to fight against Conor. That’s definitely a platform that would bring Conor — maybe get Conor on the straight and narrow a little bit to get focused on, and get back in the octagon to fight, but it could be anybody. Maybe it’s another American.
“Who knows what it is. … If you’re a betting man, I still say I wouldn’t bet on it. But definitely bet the house on Chandler fighting on the White House card.”
As mentioned by Chandler, he and McGregor appeared to be finally slated to throw down when they were officially booked as UFC 303’s main event last year. Unfortunately for Chandler, he lost out on the bout when McGregor suffered a broken toe two weeks out, which led to a rematch between light heavyweights Alex Pereira and Jiří Procházka as the replacement.
Ultimately, all systems were a go on Chandler vs. McGregor until the injury struck. Even in hindsight, and despite the questionable severity, Chandler doesn’t think it was all a stunt from the Irishman.
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“My brain doesn’t really compute that somebody would do all of that knowing they were going to pull out of the fight,” Chandler said. “With that being said, would I put it past anybody? No. People are the worst kind of humans. People do crazy things, right?
“I think he had every intention to fight. Broken pinky toe? I don’t know. I would have stepped in there, but I’m different than a lot of guys. Still never pulled out of a fight, still never missed weight in 15-16 years, 30-something fights. It’s just what I do.”
