Michael Chandler

Chandler was the second of four children born to Michael Sr. and Betty Chandler in High Ridge, Missouri. He is of German and Irish ancestry. Chandler was on the honor roll every term of high school, earned three football letters, and came second in the MSHSAA State Championships in wrestling as a senior. During his senior year, he was named Most Valuable Wrestler and was named to the All-St. Louis Team.

Chandler enrolled at the University of Missouri without an athletic scholarship after graduating from Northwest High School in 2004 and walked onto the school’s wrestling team. Chandler was a four-time NCAA Division I qualifier at Missouri, with 100 career victories and a fifth-place finish at the NCAAs as a senior, earning DI All-American honors.

Chandler finished second in the Big 12 Championships in 2008 and 2009 and received automatic invites to three of the four NCAA Championships he competed in. Chandler finished his four years as a starter with a 31-15 record against Big 12 opponents and a 100-40 overall record.

He studied personal financial management services and real estate. He also became close to two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner and eventual Bellator MMA World Champion Ben Askren, as well as two-time All-American and eventual UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley.

Chandler began training in mixed martial arts at Xtreme Couture immediately after his wrestling career ended. Chandler chose not to compete as an amateur and made his professional MMA debut in August 2009 with a first-round TKO victory against Kyle Swadley. Chandler made his Strikeforce debut on November 20, 2009, at Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears, defeating Richard Bouphanouvong via technical knockout in the second round. His next fight in the promotion was against Sal Wood on May 15, 2010, at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery. He won the fight in under a minute through submission.

Chandler made his Bellator debut on September 30, 2010, at Bellator 31, defeating Scott Stapp in the first round via technical knockout. Chandler’s prior bouts had all been in the welterweight class, thus the battle was conducted at a catchweight to put him to the test for the lightweight division. Chandler’s next Bellator fight was on the Bellator 32 event on October 14, 2010, against Chris Page in a welterweight bout. In the first round, he won through submission.

Bellator Season 4 Lightweight Tournament

Chandler was named as a competitor in the Bellator Season Four Lightweight Tournament in February 2011. Chandler played Marcin Held in the first round of the competition on March 12, 2011. After choking Held unconscious with an arm-triangle choke, he won the match via technical submission. Chandler advanced to the semi-finals with the victory.

Chandler subsequently fought Lloyd Woodard at Bellator 40, which he won by unanimous decision to go to the tournament’s finals. Chandler faced Patricky Pitbull in the tournament final at Bellator 44. He used his wrestling abilities to consistently take down Freire and control the battle. He won a unanimous decision over Freire to win $100,000 and a crack at the Bellator Lightweight World Title.

Chandler was scheduled to challenge for the Bellator Lightweight World Title against Eddie Alvarez at Bellator 54 on October 15, 2011. Unfortunately, Alvarez sustained an unspecified injury, causing the fight to be rescheduled. The fight was then rescheduled for November 19, 2011 at Bellator 58. Chandler won an instant classic by submitting Eddie Alvarez in the fourth round.

Chandler was scheduled to make his second defense against Bellator Season Seven Lightweight Tournament Winner Dave Jansen at Bellator 96 on June 19, 2013. However, on June 2, it was revealed that Jansen had withdrawn from the fight due to an injury and would instead meet David Rickels at Bellator 97. He won the fight through a first-round knockout.

After this Chandler fought 3 more times at Bellator then later became a free agent signing for UFC.

Chandler signed a deal with the UFC on September 17, 2020, and will serve as a backup for a title fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.

Chandler made his professional debut on January 24, 2021, against Dan Hooker at UFC 257. He won by technical knockout in the first round. This victory earned him the prize for Performance of the Night.

With the retirement of previous champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Chandler fought long-time veteran Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC Lightweight Title at UFC 262 on May 15, 2021. Although nearly ending Oliveira in the first round, Chandler was defeated via a technical knockout early in the second.

On November 6, 2021, Chandler battled former UFC Interim Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje in UFC 268. Chandler was defeated by a unanimous decision in a back-and-forth contest. This fight was named Fight of the Night. The fight was also named Fight of the Year by the UFC and other mixed martial arts media sites.

On May 7, 2022, Chandler challenged former UFC Interim Lightweight Champion Tony Ferguson at UFC 274. He knocked out Ferguson with a front kick in the second round to win the bout. Chandler received his second Performance of the Night bonus award as a result of his victory. That also earned him the Crypto.com “Fan Bonus of the Night” award in second place.

Chandler fought Dustin Poirier at UFC 281 on November 12, 2022. In the third round, he was submitted with a rear-naked choke. This bout won him the title of Fight of the Night.

Chandler was named as the coach for The Ultimate Fighter 31 versus Conor McGregor in early February 2023. They will meet again after the season, at a later date to be determined.