Ex-Bellator champion Brent Primus till has some beef with former rival Michael Chandler and he doesn’t fail to show it.
The former Bellator champion has had an ongoing beef with chandler for years that supersedes any division switch. The two fighters had their first bout in 2020 which needed a draw but since then Primus has sough a rematch but none was given as Chandler made a switch to UFC shortly after this.
Since “The Notorious” made his switch to UFC, he has battled fierce opponents like Dustin Poirier and Tony Ferguson, but his eyes have been on Conor McGregor for some time now. Chandler has been scheduled to fight the Irishman, but the fight kept getting moved due to withdrawal and injuries. For now, the fight has been moved to 2025 pending when McGregor decides to make a comeback.
During his wait, Chandler remained in training camp but did not step into the cage until recently, when he faced Charles Oliveira at UFC 309. The battle was a tough slugfest, with both opponents giving it everything they had, but in the end, Oliveira triumphed via split decision.
Although many believe Chandler put his best foot forward and even began to gain some ground in the fourth and fifth rounds of the fight, Primus didn’t see much improvement in the fighter’s strategy.
“Man, he looked like crap in his last fight,” Primus said about Chandler’s loss when speaking to MMA Fighting. “I could not believe that. I think Chandler looked like crap. His footwork, he was falling everywhere. He was throwing his right hand like he was throwing a baseball. I was not impressed with his performance. His callout was kind of cringey.
“I don’t like that guy. I think Chandler he’s a cheater. I feel like he’s a dirty fighter. I just don’t like that guy at all. Watching Oliveira pick him apart like that it was kind of fun to see, for sure. I liked it.”
Primus believes the fighter there was something off about Chandler’s game plan and he says the fighter didn’t put in enough energy to win the bout. Although he is not surprised Oliveira has defeated Chandler at their last outing, Primus believed Chandler used to be an unstoppable opponent in the cage and his long hiatus from the cage has made him lose some of his edge.
There was one or two rounds that could have been 10-8 rounds,” Primus said. “Chandler, that’s what happens when you take two years off waiting for somebody. You could totally tell the ring rust in him and I just think he looked like crap. His feet weren’t underneath him, he was kind of falling everywhere. He tripped on the cage. He wasn’t setting up his punches wasn’t telegraphing them. He looked like he was throwing a baseball.
“It was kind of an embarrassing performance from Chandler. You sit out for two years and wait for somebody. That’s what happens.”
Although Primus’s fight with Chandler happened some years back, the ex-champion can’t seem to get over the fact that there will never be a rematch. Primus says, “Chandler cheated at their last fight, and he wanted to make things right in a rematch.
“That guy’s such a cheating little punk,” Primus said. “I can’t stand that guy. I heard Dustin Poiriersay he doesn’t want to fight him because he’s just a dirty cheater. Putting his fingers in his eyes and blowing blood in his eyes. Chandler definitely was a good fighter, but he looked like he had a lot of ring rust in him.
“I just think he’s a dirty cheater. Just a dirty cheater guy and if he’s not going to win or have his way, he’s going to make up excuses and try to cheat. I was pretty happy to see Oliveira pick him apart like that. Oliveira’s the man.”
“After we fought in Hawaii and he won the belt back from me in that decision win. I was in the back, and my manager said ‘Bellator wants to know if you want to fight him again. They want a third fight,’” Primus revealed. “I was like, hell yeah, let’s go. Let’s do this.
“It never happened. He went to the UFC shortly after that but that’s one fight I would definitely take for sure.”
Although there may never be a Primus vs Chandler fight, the ex-Bellator champion still has a lot of other worthy opponents to face. Primus is slated to fight next week at the PFL 2024 Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
