Michael Chandler was present at UFC 254, where Khabib Nurmagomedov retired after defeating Justin Gaethje to become the undisputed UFC lightweight champion.
While Chandler didn’t get a chance to make his UFC debut at the event, it could be coming this January.
“When a man says he’s going to go, he’s going to go – but here we are,” Chandler told BT Sport (via Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie). “I’m excited to be a part of the UFC lightweight division right now at the top when there is no UFC lightweight champion. So we’ll see what happens next. … I did mention Tony Ferguson’s name and we were talking about January, but now we’ve got Justin Gaethje in here talking about eight weeks from tonight wanting to fight for a title. Let’s be honest: I’m the new guy. I’m not going to come in here and say, ‘Hey guys I deserve a title shot.’ I’d love my name to be thrown into the mix.”
Chandler was the backup for the main event of UFC 254 between Nurmagomedov and Gaethje. The former Bellator lightweight champion believes a new UFC lightweight champion should be crowned in a four-man tournament.
“I’d love the opportunity to fight in a four-man tournament for that title,” Chandler said. “Conor, Poirier, myself, Ferguson. There’s some names that need to be fighting for a title, so let’s make it happen.”
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