Conor McGregor has suggested his issue with Michael Chandler has now been resolved ahead of their UFC meeting.
McGregor has been out of action for almost two years after breaking his leg, but recently announced his long-awaited return to the octagon will take place against Chandler later this year. His comeback outing is part of the UFC's latest instalment of The Ultimate Fighter series, with McGregor and Chandler currently filming in Las Vegas for the coaching stint of the event.
With both men competing against each other to win the competition, tensions threatened to spill over while on set as the pair were involved in a number of spats over their differences. However McGregor has now insisted the tense moments were natural in rivalry and confirmed he still has respect for his upcoming opponent.
“I had respect for (Michael) Chandler [before TUF 31] – we had an issue, right,” McGregor told Barstool Sports when explaining his recent reported altercation with Chandler. “Obviously, tempers are flaring – it’s a f***ing hostile thing. I like his style, he likes my style, we have a good little buzz.
“There’s still competitive fire – I’m still gonna mince him. I know he’s gonna try and throw everything into his shots also. But there’s still admiration – that’s how it should be. That’s how sport should be, you should have the ability to separate it. We had an issue once during it, and it’s all good. Tempers were flaring – we got past it.”
Chandler will be looking to rain on his rival's parade with fans likely to lap up the UFC's biggest star's comeback fight despite his recent form. McGregor is looking to make a successful comeback to the octagon to halt his slump of just one win in his last four fights which included two defeats by Dustin Poirier.
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Equally, Chandler lost to 'The Diamond' last time out and he will to regain momentum in his push for a title charge. With new differences cropping up between the pair, Chandler has since claimed he no longer likes McGregor despite admitting previous fondness.
"I'm a pretty nice even keel guy but I don't really like Conor McGregor that much," he said after filming. "I've got a ton of respect for him, but he and I don't see eye-to-eye in a lot of ways. That's a lot of competitive chirp. Even in his awesome trash talk, he's got a lot of respect for the purity of MMA.
"We have a lot of mutual respect for one and other, but I don't know if we like each other as much we thought we were going to. The good thing is we get to settle it with 4oz gloves."
