After a 10-year run as one of the best fighters competing outside of the Octagon, the 34-year-old Chandler is set to step into the UFC cage for the first time this weekend in a co-main event clash with Dan Hooker.
Chandler enjoyed three different reigns atop Bellator’s 155-pound weight class and boasts a 21-5 record that includes victories over former UFC lightweight champs Benson Henderson and Eddie Alvarez, as well as Marcin Held, Patricky Pitbull, and many others. The compact powerhouse from Missouri has won five of his last six heading into his promotional debut this weekend and has a chance to instantly insert himself in the title conversation if he’s able to post a victory over Hooker in Saturday’s penultimate matchup.
Training out of Sanford MMA, Chandler has spent countless hours competing in the gym alongside a number of elite UFC talents, including welterweight champ Kamaru Usman and impending title challenger Gilbert Burns, and has all the requisite skills and attributes needed to be an instant threat in his new environment.
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Hooker has gone 7-2 since returning to the lightweight ranks and took part in two of the best five fights of 2020, beating Paul Felder by split decision in February before dropping a unanimous decision to Saturday’s headliner Poirier at the end of June. He’s established himself as a legitimate contender and is a perfect, dangerous dance partner for Chandler in his promotional debut.
Should Chandler earn a victory on Saturday night, he’ll thrust himself into the thick of the chase in the loaded lightweight division. With the title situation uncertain at the moment, a statement win over an established guy like Hooker would be a great way for Chandler to introduce himself to the UFC audience and make his case for being on the short list of title contenders heading into the second quarter of 2021.
