Michael Chandler Not Interested in Revisiting His Fiery Feud with Patricio Pitbull in the UFC
Michael Chandler has no plans to reignite his feud with Patricio Pitbull now that they both compete under the UFC banner.
Last month, Dana White announced that the promotion had signed the former two-division Bellator titleholder and would make his Octagon debut on April 12 when the UFC heads back to Miami for a pay-per-view event inside the Kaseya Center.
That same night, Chandler will step into the co-main event spotlight for a clash with rising lightweight contender, Paddy Pimblett.
Of course, Chandler and Pitbull have a long history going back to their Bellator days, but ‘Iron’ made it clear that he has no interest in mixing it up with Pitbull on MMA’s biggest stage.
“Yeah, not interested in relitigating anything, man,” Chandler told CBS Sports. “I’m not a guy who tries to get anything back, and also I’m not a type of guy who likes to have any animosity. Obviously I knocked his brother out almost twice, definitely knocked him out once pretty bad. I think there was a miscommunication there with the language barrier.
“I said something about family because of his brother and then I think he interpreted that as mom, wife, sister, brother, kids, and all that, and I think it got blown out of proportion to be honest with you. With that being said, I wish him the best in the UFC. I want him to come over and do well.”
Michael Chandler ready to let ‘bygones be bygones’
While Pitbull appears to still be frustrated by past comments from Chandler, the former three-time Bellator lightweight champion plans to keep things professional when they inevitably cross paths.
“He’s a 145’er, I’m a 155’er, I’ve got no interest in fighting Patricio ‘Pitbull,’ but it’ll be interesting to share the same card with him,” Chandler said. “And when I do see him, I will shake his hand respectfully, might even apologize for the miscommunications in the past. Let’s let bygones be bygones. You don’t need to spend any of your energy on me. Focus on trying to become the featherweight champion of the UFC.”
Pitbull will face former interim champion Yair Rodriguez in his Octagon debut at UFC 314. It will be his first fight since scoring a third-round knockout against Jeremy Kennedy at a Bellator Champions Event in March. Overall, Pitbull is 36-7 and has won four of his last six.
