Chael Sonnen considers the idea of Conor McGregor settling his beef with a former rival in his comeback UFC fight.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC), who hasn’t competed since July 2021, is eyeing a return at the UFC’s planned White House event next June. Sonnen argues that with McGregor’s inactivity and gruesome leg break, his comeback fight doesn’t have to have any implications or consequences. He also doesn’t expect him to win, but says it’s important that his opponent is a winnable fight.
That’s why he pitched the name Tony Ferguson (25-11 MMA, 15-9 UFC), who has traded barbs with McGregor plenty in the past. Ferguson parted ways with the UFC after a company record eight-straight losses last July, but picked up his first combat sports win in years when he stopped Salt Papi in a boxing match last month.
“Not only is it not going to be a title fight, it’s not going to be a No. 1 contender fight,” Sonnen said of McGregor’s return on his YouTube channel. “It’s not going to be a fight that affects the rankings at all, and everybody is eligible. Conor used to be a world champion, so Conor can fight anybody, but Conor is not ranked. Conor is not even licensed.
“So if we bring him back, we could put him with somebody that isn’t ranked, an older name, a name that you know. We can bring somebody in. Tony Ferguson would not be off the table. This doesn’t affect anything in the future. This is a one-night-only event.”
Sonnen admits the right thing to do would be to grant Michael Chandler the opportunity after he’s waited for the fight to materialize for so long. Chandler recently said he thinks he will finally get his desired matchup against McGregor at the White House.
