UFC tipped to create brand-new title for Conor McGregor's fight with Michael Chandler

Michael Chandler has suggested a brand-new UFC title could be on the line for when he welcomes Conor McGregor back to the Octagon.

After UFC 300, Dana White officially announced McGregor vs. Chandler for UFC 303's International Fight Week card on June 29.

It will be the Irishman's first fight since his crushing first-round defeat to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 back in July 2021.

Chandler was in Las Vegas for UFC 300 and spoke to the press about his match-up with the 'Notorious'.

And he teased that the UFC could create a brand-new belt for their UFC 303 showdown.

The 37-year-old revealed that he and McGregor could be fighting for the promotion's inaugural 165lbs title (light-welterweight), which has also been proposed by UFC legend Daniel Cormier.

"That was one of the rumours as well, the 165 belt, obviously, that has not happened," said Chandler.

"Even me in this position, man, I would not be surprised if that bout agreement comes over and it says for the 165 title. You never know because the UFC has to keep a lot of things secret.

"Even to us, right? I mean, you saw Conor broke the announcement again before the UFC did it. I’m sure the UFC said, 'Hey, don’t do it because we’re gonna do it at the post-fight press conference'.

"They want to hold a lot of the information. We knew the date. I knew what the weight class most likely was going to be, and then they sent it over. It should be for a belt, but we’ll see if we can’t make one up."

Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler face off. Image: Getty

If McGregor vs. Chandler isn't at 165lbs, then the bout will be contested at 170lbs (welterweight), which is perfect for the American fighter.

"I think 170 is perfect," he added. "155 is not easy to make. So, fighting at 170 is gonna be kind of a perfect camp, honestly. I weigh about 190. Getting down to 170 is kind of gonna be easy compared to 155, obviously.

"I think I’ll compete phenomenally there. I'm still gonna do the exact same camp. I’m still gonna get my weight similar to where I would be at 155, I just won’t dehydrate myself at the end.

"So, I wanna stay big, I wanna stay strong, wanna stay explosive. So, I think 170 is gonna be perfect."

Topics: Conor McGregor, Michael Chandler, UFC

Nasir Jabbar

Nasir Jabbar is a journalist at SPORTbible. He graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA in Media Communications. He's a combat sport aficionado and has contributed to MMA websites AddictedMMA and CagePotato. Nasir has covered some of the biggest fights, while interviewing the likes of Conor McGregor, Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Darren Till. He's also an avid Bristol City fan.

@NasJabbar