Thus far, the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the World Wrestling Entertainment have largely been kept as separate entities despite their merger into the TKO Group Holdings back in September. But that all changed on Monday when UFC star Michael Chandler received a segment on ‘WWE Monday Night Raw’, calling out Conor McGregor in the process.
Raw ring announcer Samantha Irvin introduced Chandler on Monday, giving him the microphone to speak to the live crowd in Anaheim, California.
“What’s up Anaheim,” said Chandler as he was given the mic by Irvin. “You are now in the presence of the most entertaining UFC fighter on the planet. There is a man from Ireland who has been making me wait for way too long. And I still have one thing on my mind. Conor McGregor, get your candy ass back in the octagon. We have some unfinished business boys. God bless, I’ll see you at the top.”
WHOA! 😲😲😲@MikeChandlerMMA just called out @TheNotoriousMMA on #WWERaw! pic.twitter.com/pUN2dUFW1r
— WWE (@WWE) February 20, 2024
For context, Chandler and McGregor were originally scheduled to fight after the most recent Ultimate Fighter season. The fight continuously got pushed back and has yet to be scheduled again. McGregor claimed he had a fight scheduled against Chandler in June, but this was ultimately refuted by UFC President Dana White, and nothing has come of it yet.
Most fans of either the WWE or the UFC saw the merger as a chance for some interesting marketing possibilities between the two companies. But this is the first time that it has affected either company’s actual television product.
We have seen UFC stars on WWE programming before, most notably with former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez. But it is typically done to tease a potential WWE match with one of the wrestling talents.
This is entirely different, as Chandler very clearly mentioned McGregor returning to the octagon for an MMA fight.
The promo from Chandler obviously begs the question. Will we see more UFC-themed content on WWE programming moving forward? Could we see a similar type of promotion for a WWE match on UFC programming soon?
Only time will tell. But this is at least a sign that the two entities will likely start to blend programming slightly moving forward if given the opportunity.
