Justin Gaethje not surprised Conor McGregor is fighting Michael Chandler: ‘That man only fights people I beat’
Justin Gaethje wasn’t shocked when it was announced Conor McGregor would be fighting Michael Chandler.
With McGregor rehabbing his broken leg and getting close to a return, many were interested to see who he would be fighting next. The Irishman has plenty of options and in the end, it was revealed he would coach TUF against Chandler and the two will fight later this year. Gaethje, meanwhile, who is set to face Rafael Fiziev at UFC 286, isn’t surprised the two are matched up as he claims McGregor only fights guys he beats.
“It makes perfect sense,” Gaethje told The Schmo. “That man only fights people I beat. So what else?”
Of course, when McGregor returned from his layoff after losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov, many thought he would face Gaethje. But, he ended up fighting Donald Cerrone who was coming off a loss to Gaethje and now he isn’t surprised the Irishman is fighting Chandler, who is also someone he beat.
Although Justin Gaethje says he doesn’t care about who wins, he could potentially face the winner if he defeats Rafael Fiziev at UFC 286. It’s an intriguing matchup and one Gaethje is confident in as he expects it to be a very fan-friendly striking fight.
“Trust in the preparation, the hard work, life-long commitment that I put into this, and go in there and put that motherf*cker to sleep,” Gaethje said. “I do what I do. March 18 I’m going to blow the roof off The O2 Arena. Every person in attendance will get their adrenaline rush and their money’s worth.”
Justin Gaethje (23-4) hasn’t fought since May of last year when he suffered a submission loss to Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title. Prior to that, he scored a decision win over Michael Chandler to return to the win column after being submitted by Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title.
