Michael Chandler promises fireworks at UFC 309.

Chandler (23-8 MMA, 2-3 UFC) runs things back with Charles Oliveira (34-10 MMA, 22-10 UFC) in the Nov. 16 co-main event at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Chandler’s five UFC appearances have included four bonuses, and he sees the opportunity to avenge his loss to Oliveira no differently. He even warned said he will outshine UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones just before Jones makes his first title defense against former champ Stipe Miocic.

“It’s a huge blessing to be considered for the Madison Square Garden card. They don’t just throw anybody on the Madison Square Garden card,” Chandler told the New York Post. “The UFC puts guys and gals on the fight card that are going to put on a great show.

“I saw Jon Jones at UFC 306 at the Sphere. We said hi, took a picture together, you know, the main and co-main and he’s like, ‘Hey, man, make sure you save some excitement for me because I’m the main event.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, probably not, man. I’m coming to steal the show.’”

Chandler on time off: ‘I really needed it’

Chandler hasn’t competed since a submission loss to Dustin Poirier in November 2022. He was scheduled to welcome Conor McGregor back to the octagon at UFC 303 in June, but McGregor withdrew due to injury. It’s been a long time without competing for Chandler, with many criticizing him for wasting his time by waiting on McGregor.

But after all these wars, Chandler looks at the time off as a blessing in disguise.

“Having that much time off, I needed it. I really needed it,” Chandler said. “Six training camps in a 26-month period, every single fight was do or die. Top three, top-five guy, world title fights, Fights of the Night, Fights of the Year, and I love the sport. I am so blessed to do the sport of mixed martial arts as a professional and get paid for it and feed my family with it, but it was taking a toll on me. I needed some time off.”

Chandler in search of redemption vs. Oliveira

In his first fight with Oliveira, Chandler came close to tasting UFC gold when he dropped and badly hurt him. However, “Do Bronx” was able to rally and stop Chandler by TKO just 19 seconds into Round 2 to claim the vacant title at UFC 262.

Chandler vows things will be different in their rematch.

“I just wasn’t where I needed to be,” Chandler said of his first fight with Oliveira. “I went in there very confident, I put in a great training camp, but I went out there to try and kill Charles Oliveira in the first second of the first round, 10-8’d him in the first round, and I just wasn’t able to keep that pace.

“I made a bad decision, put myself in some bad spots. I wasn’t fighting to the best of my ability, and I’ve since fixed all of those things, mainly mentally and spiritually, and I just think it’s going to be a masterful performance. I think I’m going to surgically and systematically break this man down until he looks for the exit sign.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Sporting have won 14 of their past 15 games, only losing in the Portuguese Super Cup this season.

Both City and Sporting are on seven points from three Champions League games so far.

In 2022 City beat Sporting 5-0 on aggregate in the last 16 of the competition.

“I feel like I’m a better coach [now],” said Amorim. “Unfortunately what I feel is that Pep Guardiola has also become an even better coach, so the gap remains.

“[City have] the best team in the world and the best coach in the world.”

City’s Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva was a team-mate of Amorim’s at Benfica in 2013-14.

“He always showed he could read the game because he played different positions – as a defender, on the left, as a midfield player,” Silva said on Monday.

“When he arrived Sporting hadn’t been champions for 20 years. He changed the playing paradigm of Sporting. They are the best team in Portugal by far.

“He will be a rival but I am glad someone else from Portugal is in the best league in the world.

“When Ruben becomes coach of Man United, we will worry about that then. Right now we want three points to get to the top eight.”

Alexandr Romanov’s UFC future is up in the air despite coming off of a win in his most recent fight.

At this past Saturday’s UFC Edmonton event, Romanov scored a unanimous decision win over Rodrigo Nascimento. The bout was the last of the heavyweight veteran’s UFC contract and, as of now, he has not re-signed with the promotion. His departure from the active roster was first reported by UFC Roster Tracker.

MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin confirmed with officials that Romanov is no longer signed to the UFC. This news does not preclude Romanov returning to the promotion with a new contract, but as of now he is free to sign with any promotion.

Romanov (18-3) has competed 10 times for the UFC, compiling a 7-3 record during that stretch. The 33-year-old Moldovan surged up the rankings with a 5-0 start to his octagon career, which included finishes in four of those fights. He holds notable wins over Blagoy Ivanov, Juan Espino, and Marcos Rogerio de Lima, but is just 2-3 in his past five fights.

Former WEC title challenger Hiromitsu Miura has died. He was 43.

In a statement shared on social media, Miura’s family announced Tuesday that he “passed away suddenly” on Oct. 26 after battling acute leukemia since mid-September.

Miura doubled as both a professional mixed martial artist and boxer, competing mostly in his native Japan.

American fans may remember Miura (13-8) from his five appearances in WEC during the late 2000s. That included a fourth-round TKO loss to then-welterweight champion Carlos Condit on Aug. 3, 2008 at WEC 35. Widely considered one of the best fights in WEC history, Miura gave Condit a run for his money in an all-action affair before he was eventually stopped with punches.

#OTD in 2008

Carlos Condit vs. Hiromitsu Miura – WEC 35 pic.twitter.com/RsE8psHYqc

— Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) August 3, 2022

After the loss to Condit, Miura made one more WEC appearance before putting his MMA career on hold to pursue boxing, where he posted a 9-1 record. Miura returned to MMA in November 2015 and one year later captured the Pancrase welterweight championship by winning a unanimous decision against Akihiro Murayama.

The Detroit Lions, coming off a 24-14 road win against the Green Bay Packers, made a big move ahead of the trade deadline. On Tuesday morning, Detroit reportedly acquired veteran defensive end Za’Darius Smith and a 2026 seventh-round pick from the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick.

It hasn’t been much of a secret that the Lions, who sit atop the NFC at 7-1, have been looking to bolster their pass rush as they aim to make a Super Bowl run. Last week, head coach Dan Campbell even hinted that Detroit could be close to swinging a deal. 

Not only did the Lions lose star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson for the season, but Marcus Davenport, John Cominsky and Derrick Barnes are on injured reserve as well. Hutchinson, who hasn’t played since Week 6, still leads the team in sacks with 7.5. 

The 32-year-old Smith could change that. This season, he’s started every game for the Browns, who fell to 2-7 on Sunday, and recorded five sacks and six tackles for loss. 

In his 10 seasons in the NFL, Smith has totaled double-digit sacks three times, most recently in 2022 with the Minnesota Vikings. This will be his third stop in the NFC North, after he spent three seasons with the Packers and one with the Vikings. 

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