Michael Chandler has spoken out following his knockout loss to Mauricio Ruffy at UFC Freedom 250, an event held from the White House in Washington DC.
Chandler entered the bout as a big underdog and was stopped by Ruffy, extending his skid to four consecutive defeats, three of them by stoppage. He has not won a fight since knocking out Tony Ferguson in May 2022.
In a video statement on social media, Chandler addressed the result and his condition, saying, "Obviously the fight did not go my way, but I'm in good spirits," and adding, "I'm happy, I am healthy, I'm hard to kill. I'm impossible to kill. I'm impossible to defeat because I'm so truly blessed. ... Physically I'm good, a little banged up. I got punched in the ear. I'm banged up in the ear, got punched right in the ear and ripped it open."
Chandler also praised his opponent and thanked the promotion: "Hats off to Mauricio Ruffy. He was a tough puzzle to solve, to get going in there. He's long, he's fast, he's accurate, he's a good striker, and he landed the shots that ended the fight. Massive thank you to the UFC for the opportunity. Massive thank you to Dana for being a visionary who does one-of-one, crazy, never-to-be-seen again type of events. But, as I said, we're happy, we're healthy, we're hard to kill."
The 40-year-old former Bellator champion and UFC title challenger, now listed at 23-11 in MMA and 2-6 in the UFC, closed by saying, "You have these moments in life where everyone's watching how you're going to respond, and I promise you, just as I always have, I will continue to respond like a champion."
