Michael Chandler says he's making a step down in opposition at UFC 314
By Simon Head
Michael Chandler said that his next UFC assignment isn't quite at the same level of the six previous bouts he's had in the UFC to date.
Chandler takes on UK MMA star Paddy "The Baddy" Pimblett in a lightweight co-main event bout at UFC 314, which takes place April 12 in Miami.
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It's a fight that Chandler sees as a chance to reset and make another run towards the UFC lightweight title, and in his mind it's also a fight against a lower caliber opponent, compared to the six bouts that he's had in the Octagon so far.
"He's definitely not up there with the guys that I have faced," Chandler told Covers.com.
"(With me) You're talking about the guy who's fought the Mount Rushmore of the guys in the lightweight division.
"Justin Gaethje – first-ballot Hall of Famer. Charles Oliveira – first-ballot Hall of Famer. Dustin Poirier – first-ballot Hall of Famer. A legend in Tony Ferguson. Dan Hooker, now a top-five guy – I dispatched with him in two and a half minutes.
"These are tough, tough dudes, and I'm not saying that Paddy isn't, but you can still compliment Paddy's skillset, and also not put him up there in the ranks of those guys that I have fought."
Chandler and Pimblett will do battle with both men looking to move into championship contention at 155 pounds. And while Chandler's 2-4 UFC record on paper is eclipsed by Pimblett's perfect 6-0 run in the UFC, Chandler said that while he's kept high-level company inside the Octagon, Pimblett's path has been somewhat easier.
“He definitely hasn't fought stiff competition," he said.
"You see some guys come into the UFC and their first fight is against an absolute killer. Paddy has slowly built up his resume and strength of schedule and competition, and the UFC is smart for doing that.
“Paddy's a marketable guy, a high yield dividend stock, if you will. The UFC is a business. They are smart. They know how to put together matchups, and it was only a matter of time before he got a top 10 opponent. And now he gets to run into a buzzsaw named Michael Chandler.”
Chandler suggested that Pimblett's undoubted star power has led to the UFC bringing him along more gradually, while Chandler arrived in the UFC as a ready-made contender and was thrown into big bouts straight away.
“His confidence and his brand are bigger than the competition that he has faced, and in the sport of mixed martial arts, the fans don't like that, and I actually empathize with that," he explained.
“I was the guy who came into the UFC, made a huge splash, knocked out Dan Hooker, but that was only one win inside the UFC.
"Then all of a sudden, I became the next big thing and Dana's talking about putting me in the title fight.
“All of a sudden, I'm in a title fight in my second fight.
"You see it with guys like Bo Nickal. Bo Nickal talks, he's confident, and hasn't really faced 'tough enough competition' for some people's liking, so he gets hate for it.
“Paddy just hasn't fought anybody to my caliber yet, or anybody inside the top 10 yet, so his confidence is unwarranted in a lot of people's eyes. But I respect him. I think he's a talented guy. He's got great grappling. He throws hard punches.”
Chandler said that his experience of facing elite opposition will stand him in good stead for fight night at UFC 314, and predicted that he'll drop the Englishman with one of his power punches en route to a much-needed victory.
"I walk across the cage, and I get into your presence. I invade your space," he stated.
"(He’ll find out) how fast I am, the power that I have. The first couple shots that he feels, if they don't put him out, are going to strike the fear of God in him.
“Paddy's best chance is to evade, evade, evade, and not get hit with one of these big shots. The problem with that is the heart rate rises, the cortisol level rises, the stress level rises, the lactic acid builds up, and he's stuck inside there for 25 minutes.
“When he gets hit by a right hand or a left hook, or he gets ripped to the body, he will go down, and I just need to be patient for that. You're going to see a better version of me step inside the Octagon against Paddy.”
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