SUMMARY
- Both UFC 298 and Monday Night RAW took place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
- On the recent episode of RAW, Michael Chandler called out Conor McGregor for a fight.
UFC 298 took place over the weekend at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. One notable observation was that, as always, numerous celebrities were present, including WWE superstar, CM Punk. As such, when Monday Night RAW rolled about, UFC’s own Michael Chandler was present cage-side, for more reasons than one.
Prior to UFC 298 this past weekend, it was revealed that the UFC and the WWE had signed a live event partnership with the Honda Center in Anaheim. As part of the deal, both promotions would host multiple events in the arena over the next five years. Thus, the new agreement will see the UFC and WWE hold at least three events a year at the arena all the way to 2028.
OCVIBE, a one-of-a-kind, immersive sports and entertainment district centered around Honda Center in Anaheim, California, today announced a first-of-its-kind partnership with @UFC and @WWE.
Check out the details here: https://t.co/GTrhtkzX8Z
— UFC News (@UFCNews) February 15, 2024
Thus, the two companies, having merged last year into the TKO Group, decided to kickstart the deal with a bang. Since the WWE is heavily leaning toward branching out and bringing stars from other promotions, they have also started bringing more stars over from their partner company. As such, UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler is seemingly the latest addition to that list.
Michael Chandler’s call out to Conor McGregor on WWE RAW
As mentioned previously, Michael Chandler, like many personalities before, was not there just to spectate the event. Although many would’ve liked to see him step inside the ring, no such thing occurred. Instead, what we got was a culmination of ‘Iron’ Mike‘s frustration over the past year. Having chased Conor McGregor to the end of the world, Chandler issued yet another callout to his opponent.
UFC’s Michael Chandler just called out Conor McGregor live on #WWERAW. pic.twitter.com/nvke1FbbAQ
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) February 20, 2024
Getting the mic, Michael cut an 80s-esque promo: “Hey, what’s up Anaheim! You are now in the presence of the most entertaining UFC fighter on the planet. Hey, now there’s a man from Ireland who has been making me wait for way too long. And I’ve still got one dude on my mind — Conor McGregor get your candy a** back to the Octagon, we’ve got some unfinished business, boys. God bless, I’ll see you at the top!”
Whilst he nearly screamed his lungs out by the end of it, Chandler received a massive pop from the audience. Despite it not being on anyone’s bingo card for the night, the surprise addition caused a substantial stir online, with many fans rushing to talk about it. With the possibility of many more such inter-promotional occurrences, both fanbases are seemingly in for a very entertaining time ahead.
Is Michael Chandler signed to the WWE?
Over the past few weeks, there has been an update on the situation regarding the Conor McGregor-Michael Chandler situation. Whilst the Irishman announced that their fight would take place in June, it was quickly shot down by UFC President Dana White, who revealed that a fight is still in the works. At the same time, at the UFC 298 post-fight presser, White indicated that McGregor may never fight again.
Previously, ‘The Notorious One‘ suffered a brutal leg break against Dustin Poirier in 2021. Since then, he has been recuperating before coming back into the limelight for TUF 31 last year. Since then, his showdown with Michael Chandler has been pending, with the latter understandably getting agitated with the continuous delays. Although Conor himself has time and again reiterated his willingness to fight, there is no word on the matter yet.
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In the meantime, Chandler has now appeared on WWE RAW and seemingly signed a contract with the promotion as well. For the most part, the details of this contract and what it entails are currently unknown. With that said, Michael Chandler might not be stepping inside the WWE ring just yet, but he wouldn’t look out of place if he eventually did. As for this new contract, only time will tell what more is in store for the fighters and the fans.