Conor McGregor’s return has been a topic of discussion for quite some time now. One of the questions surrounding the same is who will he face on his return? According to Chael Sonnen, a welterweight competitor that nobody’s talking about would fit this role perfectly.
In a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, 'The American Gangster’ presented the idea that Michael Chiesa should fight the Irishman as both have some history:
“Michael Chiesa. That’s the one that has absolutely never been discussed by anybody… But just to remind you guys. When the bus incident between Conor and the dolly and Khabib took place, there was lawsuits that followed that. And Chiesa was one of them. Chiesa got glass into his eye, it was very bad experience.”
The former UFC middleweight contender elaborated that there’s a story waiting to be told as neither of the interested parties have decided to do so. Per Sonnen, this would be a fight that has all the ingredients of a memorable showdown:
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“I think that there’s a story there… I’ve always thought there was a story there that should be told. But neither guy has told it. Neither guy’s manager told it, neither camp has told it, no trainers have told it… But that’s the match. That’s a very interesting match from a stylistic standpoint. That checks a lot of boxes.”
Watch Chael Sonnen discuss a potential Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chiesa matchup below:
The bus incident took place on April 3, 2018 at UFC 223 media day in Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn, New York. This was when 'The Notorious’ was looking to confront Khabib Nurmagomedov, who was on the bus leaving the arena with other fighters. The Irishman grabbed a metal dolly and threw it into the moving vehicle, smashing the bus’s window.
This caused injuries to both Michael Chiesa and Ray Borg, who had to withdraw from the fight card. On September 12 Chiesa announced a lawsuit against McGregor. However, it is unknown if he went through with it.
Nate Diaz doesn't want to fight Conor McGregor
One potential opponent discussed in the context of Conor McGregor's return fight is Nate Diaz. However, the Stockton native is on the last fight of his contract and has been trying to secure a bout that doesn't involve the Irishman.
"I been trying to fight everybody and no go what’s the hold up ufc? I’m not fighting Conor he sucks. I’ll fight some one quit slow rolling me please. Thanks"
Check out the Twitter post below:
McGregor and Diaz have fought each other on two different occasions. The first fight took place back in March 2016 at UFC 196, where the Stockton native submitted 'The Notorious' in the second round. The rematch took place at UFC 202 but this time McGregor was victorious as he secured a majority decision victory.
The trilogy fight was in discussion for quite some time but never came to fruition as Conor McGregor focused his attention on winning and regaining the lightweight title. On the other hand, Diaz has fought three times since his rematch with McGregor and is now looking to make his way out of the promotion.
However, considering the revenue a third fight between the two would generate, it remains to be seen if the promotion will be able to bring the bout to fruition.