Michael Chandler reveals he didn’t believe he’d knockout Tony Ferguson with headkick: “It’s the opposite of the way I planned it”

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler has discussed his viral knockout of Tony Ferguson at UFC 274.

The two fan favorites squared off last Saturday night in a bout that had high expectations. Against all odds, Chandler and Ferguson somehow lived up to the hype. Round one was a hectic one, as ‘El Cucuy’ scored a knockout and busted his foe up badly.

Heading into round two, Chandler was down on the scorecards, however, they didn’t matter. Seconds into the frame, he brutally knocked out Ferguson with a head kick. The loss was the first ever knockout loss of the former UFC interim lightweight champion’s career.

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Michael Chandler has revealed the knockout was mostly accidental. While he connected full force with Tony Ferguson’s face, that’s not what he expected. When he actually threw the kick up the middle, Chandler admitted that the distance seemed off to him, but he threw anyway.

(via Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“It’s the exact opposite of the way I planned it. The distance didn’t seem perfect to me. I just threw something up the middle, and it landed. Then I felt the impact and saw him crumble. I never, ever thought I would have thrown a front kick and knocked him out. But here we are.”

Michael Chandler continued, and also noted that the shocking knockout got the better of him. While Tony Ferguson was unconscious, the fan-favorite did multiple backflips and celebrated.

“When I landed the kick, the moment got the better of me. I started with my backflips, my celebration. Then I looked over and saw Tony was still on the ground, and that’s when I decided to tone it down. My heart goes out to Tony for a speedy recovery.”

What do you think about Michael Chandler’s comments? Who do you want to see him fight next?