Michael Chandler previews Charles Oliveira rematch at UFC 309, wants to make the Brazilian "find the exit sign"

Michael Chandler has put forth his assessment of his upcoming rematch against Charles Oliveira. 'Iron' notably warned that he'll make Oliveira quit.

Prior to their first encounter at UFC 262 in May 2021, Chandler and many others in the MMA community criticized Brazil's Oliveira for supposedly 'quitting' in his fights. But their UFC 262 clash witnessed 'Do Bronx' almost get knocked out by Chandler in round one, only to rally and finish the American in round two. Oliveira thereby captured the vacant UFC lightweight title.

Chandler and various other critics subsequently praised Oliveira for proving he wouldn't quit even under hellacious fire.

Oliveira last competed in April 2024, losing a razor-thin split decision to Arman Tsarukyan. Meanwhile, Michael Chandler hasn't competed since a submission defeat against Dustin Poirier in November 2022.

The Oliveira-Chandler rematch is set to co-headline UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York this Saturday, Nov. 16.

During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Michael Chandler was asked about having faced multiple opponents in rematches in the past, including the likes of Eddie Alvarez, Brent Primus, and others.

In regard to his upcoming rematch against Oliveira, Chandler opined that all the pressure is on the Brazilian because the former champ has already beaten him and is expected by some to do the same again.

Additionally, he affirmed his confidence in his preparation and game plan heading into the fight, the winner of which could be catapulted into the lightweight title picture:

"Man, he's a consummate professional. He came back, in my fight. He was hurt in the Gaethje fight, hurt in the Poirier fight. And he gets hurt in certain fights, and he has continued to battle back. And he became the champion for a reason.

"I think that quit is still in there. It's just stuffed a little bit further down in there. It's going to take a little bit more to be able to pull it out. We've all got a little bit of quit in us. You just got to keep [being] put in the position, in order to succumb to it. So that's my goal on Saturday night. Push him to that point, make him find the exit sign, look for the exit sign, and me ushering him toward it."

Check out Michael Chandler's comments below (4:14 and 5:29):

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Michael Chandler reaffirms multi-fight plan ahead of UFC 309

In a recent interview with Shakiel Mahjouri, Michael Chandler outlined multi-fight plan for him, commencing at UFC 309.

Chandler implied that after fighting Charles Oliveira, he'd like to face Conor McGregor, Islam Makhachev (provided he beats Arman Tsarukyan in their expected UFC lightweight title fight), and then Max Holloway.

However, Chandler acknowledged that his dream lineup could lose one matchup if combat sports megastar McGregor doesn't return to the octagon:

"That's a crazy four-fight run. Maybe it ends up being three fights. Maybe Conor does come back, doesn't come back."