Daniel Cormier has narrowed down Conor McGregor’s options for his next fight.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) is on the mend after he broke his fibula in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021 and has been called out by an array of fighters, from ex-UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira to Michael Chandler.
With McGregor expected to come back later this year, Cormier thinks there are two viable options – one of which he thinks will actually end up happening.
“Well, I’ve got two names. I know who he should fight, and I know who he probably will fight,” Cormier said on ESPN’s YouTube channel. “Who he should fight is Nate Diaz. They should complete this trilogy. It’s a massive fight. Both guys are not necessarily in the title picture right now. It’s a fun fight. We’ve seen it twice and both of them have delivered. I think it’s evenly matched, so I think he should fight Nate Diaz. Who I believe he will fight is Michael Chandler because Michael Chandler has taken the UFC by storm.
“This guy only had four fights (in the UFC so far). He has now had the greatest front-kick knockout of all time, he has knocked out Dan Hooker, fought for the championship, fought in a Fight of the Year fight against Justin Gaethje – so his resume is strong, his profile is strong and every single time he wins a fight, he jumps on that microphone and he makes a statement. And in his last fight, he made a statement that he’s ready to fight Conor McGregor.”
Chandler (23-7 MMA, 2-2 UFC) called McGregor out after his incredible front kick knockout of Tony Ferguson at UFC 274 earlier this month. It’s not the first time the former title challenger has expressed interest in facing McGregor, mentioning his name after his UFC debut knockout of Dan Hooker. Lucky for Chandler, he has Dana White on board with the matchup too.
“I think this fight works. I think Chandler is going to engage him on the terms under which McGregor wants to fight and Chandler is willing to go and fight him at 170,” Cormier said. “So I think he should fight Nate Diaz, (but) I think that he will fight Michael Chandler.”
Diaz (20-13 MMA, 15-11 UFC) is a tricky one. Although it appears to be a no brainer to have Diaz and McGregor settle things in a rubber match, the superstar from Stockton, Calif., currently is on the last fight of his UFC deal and has asked to be released after expressing his frustration with the promotion on numerous occasions. Diaz shocked the world at UFC 196 when he handed McGregor his first UFC loss, but McGregor evened the score when he outlasted him in a five-round battle at UFC 202.