Chael Sonnen reveals who's likely to face the winner of Dustin Poirier vs. Michael Chandler

Chael Sonnen recently previewed the upcoming Dustin Poirier vs. Michael Chandler matchup, which takes place at UFC 281.

'The Bad Guy' mentioned that the winner could get a UFC lightweight title shot. He also mentioned another lightweight who is equally, if not more, deserving of a title shot. Sonnen also referred to the potential title clash between pound-for-pound king Alexander Volkanovski and Islam Makhachev early next year:

"Feel free to remind me about a young man named Beneil Dariush. But we're either right or we're wrong. We're either right that there's no number-one contender because Volkanovski is the number-one contender and we've got a period of time. I think that takes us through March of next year right?"

Sonnen added that the timetable for the winner's likely return to action could also factor into the UFC's decision:

"So now you're talking about a return realistically in June and maybe even July. You've got some time but we're going to have to get somebody in there to be the next number-one contender... Is this a situation where the winner of Chandler-Poirier draws in to Benny [Dariush]?"

How does Poirier-Chandler affect the lightweight division according to Chael Sonnen?

In the same YouTube video, Chael Sonnen mentioned that the upcoming lightweight bout winner could become the No.1 contender. The victor could then position himself for a title shot against the winner of Makhachev vs. Volkanovski.

However, 'The Bad Guy' believes Beneil Dariush needs to be factored into the equation at 155lbs. Based on the rankings and Dariush’s impressive 8-fight winning streak, the purpose for Poirier-Chandler could be to set up a title eliminator:

"I don't think we could reasonably number-one contender this match, I don't...'cause I think you got Benny [Dariush] sitting there. But, I don't think Benny could go next as long as the chips fall where they're supposed to fall because that [next title challenger] appears to be Volkanovski. So am I right? Am I right that Dariush is sitting there and he's ready and he is coming...and it's either going to be Chandler or it's going to be Poirier?"

Check out the full video below: