Conor McGregor came to blows with Michael Chandler in the latest episode of Ultimate Fighter, pushing his opponent into an angry exchange before vowing to break his nose.
Tempers flared between the pair on this week’s show when Chandler’s fighter once again beat one of the McGregors, prompting a trade between the two.
McGregor had failed to weigh in his own fighter, Lee Hammond, before facing Chandler’s Kurt Holobaugh, which Chandler picked up on.
“Pile them up, baby. Maybe if you showed up for them, Chandler said, stepping up to an approaching McGregor.
“I’ll show up and bust your nose, you little fool, little Bellator tick,” McGregor said. “You will do nothing.
Conor McGregor came to blows with Michael Chandler in this week’s Ultimate Fighter
Chandler taunted the Irishman after beating his team again on the program
Chandler said, “I can’t wait,” to which McGregor shoved him in the chest and Chandler clapped.
“Are we going to do this, are we going to fight now,” Chandler asked, seemingly ready to go and then.
That’s when UFC chief Dana White, standing outside the octagon watching the two screams, rushed to separate them. At one point, he is heard shouting “get out of my way”.
Reflecting on the incident in a cut scene filmed afterwards, Chandler said, “Conor McGregor grabbed my face and pushed me.
“I’m ready to fight there if it breaks down.”
Most of the filming for this series took place in March. McGregor and Chandler are set to fight at the end of the Ultimate Fighter series, but right now there are myriad reasons why the Irishman won’t be stepping into the octagon soon.
McGregor was recently accused of sexual assault by a woman he allegedly met during the NBA Finals between Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets.
The woman met McGregor during the match at Kaseya Center and was leaving the arena when she claims her security told her he was asking for her in the bathroom. Once inside the bathroom, she claims he forced her to perform oral sex on him and forcefully kissed her.
UFC chief Dana White looked nervous as things heated up between the two fighters
McGregor says he’s ‘well prepared’ for next fight with Michael Chandler
She claims McGregor then spat on her and himself trying to wake up. The woman’s lawyer told DailyMail.com that she went to the police to report the incident but was turned away and advised to seek legal help.
McGregor denies the allegations. “These allegations are false. Mr McGregor will not be intimidated,’ his lawyer said in a statement when the allegations surfaced.
Additionally, he has yet to re-enroll in the USADA drug testing pool and recently missed the deadline to set up his next fight with Michael Chandler this year.
The final UFC pay-per-view event of 2023 is scheduled for Dec. 16, so McGregor is expected to make himself available for testing by June 16 to complete the mandatory six months of random drug testing to be allowed to compete.
However, McGregor still hasn’t been added to USADA’s online database. In fact, he hasn’t been there since the third quarter of 2021.
Still, McGregor recently insisted on Twitter he is “well prepared” for his next fight, suggesting he could be back in action this year.
The Irishman hasn’t fought since being beaten by Dustin Poirer for the second time in 2021
He tweeted: “I’m looking forward to my next fight. I’m well prepared. Chandler also feels like he’ll be fighting McGregor in 2023.
“I think Conor is coming back,” Chandler said on Daniel Cormier’s YouTube channel last week. “I don’t think he wants to smudge his legacy by dragging us all down this path of ‘I’m doing the Ultimate Fighter, I’m fighting Michael Chandler – Oh, by the way, too bad. I’m not coming back.”
“Supposedly there was a countdown with USADA, six months and everything. It’s not for me to choose or decide.
‘Have there been any exemptions before? People talk about exemptions. Of course, everything is on the table.