Daniel Cormier: ‘Right place, right time’ for Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler to be UFC’s first 165lb title fight

Daniel Cormier advocates for UFC 303 to kickoff 165lb division

During a recent episode of Good Guy/Bad Guy with Chael Sonnen, Cormier explained why launching a 165lb division with McGregor vs. Chandler makes sense.

“A lot of time it comes down to being at the right place, at the right time,” Cormier began. “Going back to me, they had no intent of giving me my first championship opportunity. But when Alexander Gustafsson got hurt, I stepped in, and I never left the title picture after. I was reliable. They could always call me and say ‘Hey, you want to fight this guy for the belt?’…

“Under the right circumstances, sometimes these things happen faster…I believe that if they’re going to do a 165lb division, it should have a name attached to the weight class that is so big, that it draws people’s attention,” Cormier continued. “Conor McGregor being that name. Michael Chandler, on the other hand, will benefit from being in the right place at the right time, whereas these guys would then fight for the ‘super lightweight’ championship. That’s what I believe it is, and it’s only 10 pounds heavier than 155. Move 170 to 175, move 185 to 195, keep 205, keep heavyweight.”

The UFC hasn’t added a new weight class since the addition of the women’s featherweight division. The division was closed last year following Amanda Nunes’ retirement.

McGregor vs. Chandler will be contested at 170lbs. McGregor hasn’t fought at welterweight since knocking out Donald Cerrone at UFC 246.

Cormier’s comments aren’t necessarily an indication of a pending UFC announcement, but McGregor vs. Chandler could feature more than solely bragging rights on the line.