Can Iron Mike Get Back in the Win Column Against Paddy the Baddy?

At UFC 303, Michael Chandler was scheduled to have the most significant fight of his career against the returning Conor McGregor. After McGregor pulled out with an injury, he switched gears and took on former Lightweight Champion Charles Oliveira in a number one contender rematch. He ended up losing that fight, and now his career is at a crossroads. He is fighting up in the rankings for the first time in his UFC stint as he is fighting the number 12th-ranked lightweight Paddy Pimblett this Saturday at UFC 314. Will Paddy solidify himself as a true contender in the lightweight division, or will Chandler get back in the win column and keep his career on the right track? 

At 38 years old, the championship-level days of Iron Mike are behind him after his last fights. He has gotten opportunity after opportunity to get himself back in the title picture but has continuously come up short. Although putting on amazing performances, and not winning any of those fights, most fans are losing faith in Chandler’s ability to win a fight against a ranked opponent. This is a major step up in competition for Pimblett, so with his experience, he should be able to overwhelm him with his pressure and power. Even though Oliveira was able to outgrapple him in his last fight, Chandler’s wrestling background should pay dividends in this fight to keep it on the feet and in his wheelhouse. If he can keep Pimblett on the back foot and against the cage, I think he will be able to land his overhead right and eventually catch his chin, which has been deemed shaky in the past. 

Paddy Pimblett came into the UFC with so much hype and promise around him. However, after a controversial win over Jared Gordon in 2022, most fans believed he was an overrated prospect. He followed that up with a decision win against over-the-hill Tony Ferguson, furthering people’s doubts about his abilities. Despite those concerns, he was able to put the world on notice with his first-round finish of King Green with a gruesome triangle choke. He will look to keep his winning streak alive as he may have caught Michael Chandler at the back end of his career. He will need to use his lateral quickness to stay away from Chandler's power and aggression and use those big movements to try and get this fight on the ground, where his jiu-jitsu skills could finish a fight at any time. If Paddy the Baddy can get this fight to the ground, even if he doesn’t get the finish, he can control Chandler and win this fight by points. 

This is an interesting fight due to the drastic difference a win for either fighter could do for them moving forward, and how devastating the loss would be. For Chandler, a win could allow him to get more exciting fights and gain his confidence back in a wide-open division. If he loses, talks would be had if he should hang it up and call it a career. As for Pimblett, a win over a former Bellator Champion and former lightweight title contender could propel him up the rankings and show everyone that he is for real. If he loses, he will never hear the end of the overrated claims and that he has been officially fraud-checked. It would take him a long time to ever get an opportunity like this again. Whichever fighter comes out on top, one thing is certain: this will be a thrilling contest, so make sure to not miss out on the action at UFC 314.