Michael Chandler addresses accusations that he cheats in UFC fights: “I’m an honest guy”

Michael Chandler has responded to accusations that he intentionally bends the rules in his UFC fights.

Chandler, the former Bellator lightweight champ, was back in action in the co-main event of UFC 309 in New York City earlier this month, taking on Brazilian legend Charles Oliveira. He lost the five-round fight by unanimous decision, and afterwards came under fire for repeatedly striking Oliveira to the back of the head — a foul in MMA — in the final round.

It was not the first time Chandler has been accused of cheating in his fights. His former opponent Dustin Poirier also accused him of several intentional fouls in their fight. Yet the former Bellator champ insists he’s not a dirty fighter.

“I’m an honest guy,” Chandler said in an interview with Ariel Helwani of Uncrowned (h/t MMA Mania). “I try to live pretty full of integrity and full of honesty, and a narrative that has been painted is not very interesting to me. [I’m] not very happy about it.

“I don’t think I did anything wrong,” Chandler continued, addressing the alleged strikes to the back of Oliveira’s head. “People could look at it and splice it and look at it under a fine tooth comb and a magnifying glass. But the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts say there is a line drawn from the crown of the head down to the neck, one inch variance on either side. So you’re talking about a two-inch area on the back of someone’s head that is considered the back of the head.”

“And if you watch, 90 percent of the shots, most of them, almost all of them, at least where I was aiming all of them? My hand, my fist was catching the ear. So if you’re catching the ear, that is not the back of the head.”

Chandler further defended his position by pointing out that the referee in charge of the fight did not intervene, which implies he didn’t see any egregious abuse of the rules.

“A referee who was two feet away never said one thing about it,” Chandler said. “But you got commentators who were 35 feet away saying it’s the back of the head. And you got other people who are saying, ‘Hey, that’s the back of the head, just like the Poirier fight.’”

“Ultimately, you’re dropping a guy, you’re down you’re down on points. You’re trying to hit him, and you’re trying to get him out of there. I’m not 100 percent thinking about that little red line between the back of the head the whole time.”

The loss to Oliveira brought Michael Chandler to 2-4 since joining the UFC. It was his second loss to the Brazilian, after suffering a TKO defeat in a fight for the vacant title in 2021. The fight marked his long-awaited return to the Octagon after sitting out several years waiting for a fight with Conor McGregor.