Michael Chandler is out for revenge at UFC 309 when he faces Charles Oliveira in the co-main event at Madison Square Garden. The two men first met back at UFC 262 where only one of two storybook moments could happen.
Either the former Bellator star was going to finally make his way into the UFC and in two fights, become the lightweight champion or "Do Bronx" would finally win the big one after years of being on the roster. Chandler is happy to admit that it was Oliveira's night back in 2021 where his dream of winning the gold was temporarily shattered.
Though he didn't get the Conor McGregor fight that he waited so long for, this opportunity to avenge his loss to the former champion and get himself back in the title picture was the kind of chance that he knew he has to grab with both hands. In a recent interview with CBS Sports' Shakiel Mahjouri, Chandler spoke about what has changed since his first encounter with Oliveira.
He believes that for all of the experience that he accumulated outside of the UFC, he's a far different competitor now compared to the one that was making just his second appearance inside the Octagon.
I was extremely green, extremely early at that point when I fought Charles and yes, I had been fighting for years, I was 34-years old, had 20-something fights but at that point in time, I had only competed in the Octagon for a little over two minutes. I had just beaten Dan Hooker, knocked him out in two and a half minutes... I was inexperienced. Charles, I think a star was born that night. That was really the night, whenever Charles became champion, and then he went on the run and he beat Gaethje, he beat Poirier, and he really became the champion and really solidified himself.
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