The biggest star in the history of MMA is headed back to the octagon. On Saturday night, UFC CEO Dana White confirmed that Conor McGregor would face off against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 on June 29 in Las Vegas.
McGregor, 35, had previously said he would face Chandler, but White’s announcement makes the bout official. McGregor and Chandler coached against each other on The Ultimate Fighter last year, with the idea that the two would fight after the end of the reality show.
McGregor (22-6) last fought in 2021 when he broke his left leg against Dustin Poirier. It marked his second straight loss to Poirier and third loss overall in four bouts. He’s only had four MMA fights since 2016.
McGregor has been big office for the UFC with the six biggest fights of all time based on pay-per-view buys and eight of the top 10. The largest audience was for UFC 229 against Khabib Nurmagomedov that had 2.4 million buys and grossed roughly $180 million from the broadcast.
The Irish MMA artist was also part of the second best-selling boxing match ever when he squared off against Floyd Mayweather in 2017. Showtime said the fight generated 4.3 million domestic PPV buys and more than $600 million in total revenue.
McGregor ranked 50th in Sportico’s tally of the world’s highest-paid athletes of all time. He’s earned an estimated $555 million when adjusted for inflation, and $465 million in nominal dollars. More than half of his total earnings were from the sale of the whiskey brand he launched in 2018, Proper No. Twelve, and the Mayweather fight.
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